THE 

HISTORY 

OF 

METHODISM  IN  MISSOURI 


ft  DECADE  OF  YEARS  FROM  1860  TO  1870. 


REV.  W.  H.  LEWIS,  D.D. 


VOL  UME  III. 


PRINTED  FOR  THE  AUTHOR. 

PUBLISHING  HOUSE  OF  THE  M.  E.  CHURCH,  SOUTH. 

BARBEE  &  SMITH,  AGENTS,  NASHVILLE,  TENX. 

1890. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1890, 

BY.  W.  H.  LEWIS, 
in  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


DEDICATION. 


To  ti\e  M.  E.  C^urci},  Soutl\, 

In  -which  I  was  born  and  cradled—for  it  has  teen  the  same  Church  all 
the  time  before  and  after  the  division;  in  which  I  -was  reared  and  edu- 
cated; in  ivki  h  I  "was  "  born  again  "  into  spiritual  life,  which  is  ifhid 
with  Christ  in  God;"  in  which  I  have  endeavored  to  f>each  the  pure 
gospel  in  its  simplicity  and  truth  for  more  than  four  and  a  Jialf  decades 
of  years  ;  in  which  my  sainted  father  and  mother  Hied  and  died  after 
having  reared  tivetve  children ,  every  one  of  whom  is  either  in  heaven  or 
on  his  and  her  way  to  heaven,  to  which  I  owe  all  I  am  and  have,  and 
•which  I  love  more  dearly  than  I  do  this  natural  life — is  this  book  sin- 
cerely and  affectionately  inscribed  BY  THE  ACTHOR. 

(3) 


PREFACE. 


AT  the  urgent  request  of  my  old  friend,  Dr.  D.  R.  McAnally, 
I  have  consented  to  write  the  continued  history  of  "Methodism 
in  Missouri,"  from  A.D.  1860,  he  having  written  said  history  to 
that  date.  I  expect  to  continue  it  as  long  as  I  may  have  time  and 
materials  with  which  to  do  so.  While  it  is  a  continuation  of  the 
same  historv,  my  part  of  it  is  distinct  and  complete  in  and  of  it- 
self from  date  of  its  commencement.  I  have  used  extensive 
quotations  from  influential  persons  because  I  thought  it  would 
give  greater  variety  and  additional  interest  to  the  history,  at  the 
same  time  carefully  preserving  its  unity  by  leaving  the  same  line 
of  thought  to  run  through  its  entire  extent.  I  hesitated,  with  no 
little*  reluctance,  to  undertake  it,  under  a  consciousness  of  my 
inability  to  produce  a  history  that  would  measure  up  to  my  ideal 
of  what  it  should  be — not  only  a  chronicle  of  facts,  but  also  the 
philosophy  of  those  facts,  the  causes  that  lie  behind  them,  thus 
tracing  the  effect  to  its  cause,  and  observing  the  operation  of  the 
cause  in  producing  the  effect,  opening  to  the  mind  of  the  historian 
a  vast  field  of  logical  and  philosophical  investigation  and  research, 
while  endeavoring  to  reach  the  true  causes  of  the  facts  and  events 
contained  in  the  annals  of  history. 

As  we  understand  it  the  history  of  "  Methodism  in  Missouri " 
should  be  not  only  a  narrative  of  what  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
has  done  in  preaching  the  gospel  and  saving  souls,  giving  an  ac- 
count of  the  lives  and  labors  of  the  men  (clerical  and  lay)  and 
consecrated  women,  who,  indeed,  should  have  a  conspicuous 
place  in  this  history;  but  it  should  also  embrace  what  the  Church 
has  done:  i.  In  material  progress,  in  the  way  of  building  houses 
of  worship  and  parsonages  for  the  homes  of  her  ministers  and 
their  families.  2.  In  the  all-important  cause  of  education,  what 
she  has  accomplished  in  establishing  instititutions  of  learning 
throughout  the  State,  from  the  primary  school  to  the  college 
proper.  3.  In  the  work  of  organizing  and  building  up  Sunday- 
schools  in  all  sections  of  the  country.  4.  In  the  part  she  has 

(5) 


6  Preface. 

taken  in  the  great  missionary  enterprise  of  sending  the  Word  of 
God  into  all  lands  and  countries  destitute  of  the  Bible.  5.  In  the 
distribution  and  circulation  of  our  religious  literature  among  our 
people,  old  and  young. 

We  think  the  above  formulated  outline  of  specifications  con- 
tains the  legitimate  subjects  of  Church  history,  though  not  an  ex- 
haustive analysis  by  any  means.  It  has  been  our  purpose  to 
make  this  history,  in  relation  to  the  foregoing  particulars,  what  it 
should  be,  full  apd  complete.  Whenever  it  comes  short  of  this 
purpose  it  is  because  we  have  not  been  able  to  obtain  the  desired 
information  and  suitable  materials  along  these  lines  of  Church 
history.  The  historian  cannot  manufacture  these  materials; 
should  he  do  so,  it  would  be  fiction,  and  not  history.  Notwith- 
standing any  deficiency  resulting  from  the  above  cause,  may  we 
not  indulge  in  the  Idea  that  the  reader  in  perusing  these  pages 
will  be  repaid  for  his  time  and  attention? 

During  the  war  period  the  operations  of  the  Church  in  her  va- 
rious departments  of  usefulness  were  well-nigh  suspended,  and 
there  is  but  little  else  than  a  sad  history  of  the  severe  and  cruel 
trials  through  which  she  was  called  to  pass  in  the  mysterious 
providence  of  God,  and  in  which  she  maintained  her  fidelity  to 
him.  This  history,  however,  is  of  paramount  importance  to  know 
how  she  passed  through  the  fierv  ordeal  of  the  fierce  and  de- 
structive persecution  of  four  years'  duration,  to  know  how  she 
submitted  to  the  dispensations  of  Divine  Providence,  uncomplain- 
ingly and  without  a  murmur;  how  she  took  joyfully  the  spoiling 
of  her  goods ;  how  they,  like  Christ  and  St.  Stephen,  prayed  for 
their  enemies  in  the  agony  of  the  last  hour,  while  they  were  ap- 
plying the  instruments  o*  torture  and  death.  To  pass  over  this 
history  in  silence  would  be  great  injustice  to  the  cause  of  truth 
and  righteousness,  great  injustice  to  those  who  lived  and  suffered 
and  died  in  the  Church  and  for  the  Church,  great  injustice  to  the  rel- 
atives and  friends  of  those  who  suffered  martyrdom  for  Christ  and 
his  Truth,  as  well  as  great  injustice  to  the  present  and  future  gen- 
erations. Such  an  omission  would  call  down  the  condemnation 
of  all  right-minded  people  upon  the  historian. 

While  we  feel  that  we  are  under  the  highest  obligations  to  give 
a  true  and  faithful  history  of  those  times,  we  do  so  with  no  un- 
kind, unchristian  feeling  toward  the  M.  E.  Church,  many  members 
of  which  no  doubt  condemned  the  conduct  of  others  in  the  course 


Preface.  7 

they  pursued  during  the  Civil  War.  Indeed,  we  harbor  no  ill-will 
toward  those  who  took  an  active  part  in  the  persecution  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South ;  for  Christ  teaches  that  we  must  love  and 
forgive  our  enemies  or  we  cannot  be  his  disciples. 

In  writing  this  history  our  motive  has  been  to  serve  the  cause 
of  truth  and  thereby  promote  the  interests  of  Christ's  kingdom 
on  earth.  We  know  that  it  is  imperfect,  subject  to  criticism,  like 
all  other  human  productions.  Of  its  literary  character  the  reader 
must  judge  for  himself.  No  effort  at  an  ornate  style  of  rhetor- 
ical embellishment  has  been  attempted.  We  give  it  for  what  it  is 
worth,  and  send  it  out  upon  its  mission,  praying  that  it  may  be 
successful  in  the  vindication  of  truth  and  in  the  accomplishment 
of  good. 

Dr.  D.  R.  McAnally  has  requested  me  to  state  that  the  second 
volume  has  been  unavoidably  delayed.  The  history  of  the  third 
volume,  however,  is  complete  in  itself,  regardless  of  what  may  go 
before  it  or  come  after  it.  It  embraces  a  very  important  period 
in  the  history  of  our  Church.  As  a  general  thing  it  would  be  out 
of  order  for  the  third  volume  to  make  its  appearance  before  the 
second,  but  in  this  case  it  can  make  no  difference,  as  the  foregoing 
reasons  show. 

I  was  expected  to  continue  the  history  to  1880,  but  when  I 
reached  1870  I  found  that  my  MS.  would  make  a  book  large 
enough,  and  concluded  to  have  it  published,  with  the  understand- 
ing that  should  it  be  desired  the  history  would  be  continued  by 
myself  or  some  one  else.  W.  H.  LEWIS. 

St.  Charles,  Mo. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

MISSOURI   CONFERENCE.  PAGE 

Our  History  Commences  Simultaneously  with  the  Civil  War 
—The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Charged  with  Being  the 
Cause  of  the  Rebellion — A  Malicious  Purpose  to  Destroy 
Said  Church — Cruel  Persecution — Maintained  Her  Relig- 
ious Integrity  through  the  Severest  Persecution — True 
Servants  of  God  Always  Persecuted — The  Prophets,  the 
Son  of  God,  the  Apostles,  the  Christians  in  the  Dark  Ages 
— The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Cannot  Ignore  Her  History 
During  the  War;  Others  Make  the  History,  the  Historian 
Writes  It  —  Forty-fifth  Session  Missouri  Conference' — 
Death  of  Rev.  B.  S.  Ashby — Prosperous  Conference  Year 
— Preachers  Non-political — St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate — 
Fasting  and  Prayer  for  Our  Common  Country— Three  Im- 
portant Topics:  Our  Country,  Our  Government,  and  Our 
Religion — Great  Suffering  on  the  Border  Line  next  to  Kan- 
sas— Rev.  N.  Scarritt — Utterance  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian 
Advocate 17 

CHAPTER  II. 

ST.   LOUIS    CONFERENCE. 

Signs  of  the  Times  Indicate  Something  Serious  in  the  Near 
Future — Public  Mind  in  a  State  of  Excitement — The  An- 
nual Conferences  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Recom- 
mend a  Day  of  Fasting,  Humiliation,  and  Prayer — Con- 
vocation of  Ministers  and  Members  of  Different  Christian 
Denominations  at  St.  Charles  to  Promote  Peace — Session 
of  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference — Death  of  Revs.  J.  A. 
Gumming  and  J.  W.  Hawkins — Ministers  of  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  Special  Objects  of  Persecution— Their  Being 
Preachers  of  That  Church  the  Only  Charge  against  Them 
—Cannot  Omit  History  of  Our  Church  During  the  War 
— Persecution  of  Revs.  D.  J.  Marquis,  J.  B.  H.  Wooldridge, 
J.  Ditzler,  the  Great  Debater,  M.  Arrington,  and  J.  Mc- 
Cary 4O 


io  Contents. 

CHAPTER  III. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE.  PAGE 
Seat  of  the  Conference  Changed  from  Hannibal  to  Glasgow 
— Orderly  Session  of  Good-looking,  Intelligent,  and  Happy 
Men  —  The  Civil  War  Rages  —  Sad  Parting  in  View  of 
Threatening  Danger — Great  Consternation  Prevails 
throughout  the  State — Persecution  of  Rev.  Andrew  Mon- 
roe— His  High  and  Influential  Character — Mrs.  Monroe — 
Their  House  Plundered  and  They  Robbed  of  All  They 
Had— Rev.  John  McGlothin  Cruelly  Treated — Seizure  of 
Our  Church  in  Louisiana  by  the  M.  E.  Church — Severe 
Trials  of  Rev.  R.  N.  T.  Holliday,  as  Related  by  Dr.  Ore- 
gon Richmond,  a  Federal  Officer '. 54 

CHAPTER  IV. 

ST.  LOUIS  CONFERENCE. 

Session  of  the  Conference  Changed  from  Warrensburg  to 
Arrow  Rock,  and  from  Arrow  Rock  to  Waverly  in  Con- 
sequence of  Great  Excitement  at  the  Two  Former  Places 
— Dr.  W.  M.  Leftwich  Captured  by  a  Squad  of  Soldiers 
While  on  His  Way  to  the  Conference — His  Account  of 
It — Small  Attendance  at  Conference  Owing  to  War 
Troubles — Short  Session,  Leaving  Much  of  the  Work  To 
Be  Done  by  Presiding  Elders — Persecution  of  Dr.  D.  R. 
McAnally — His  Wonderful  Life  in  Various  Departments 
of  Usefulness — Gives  a  Statement  of  His  Troubles  —  Pub- 
lishing House  and  Book  Depository  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  in  St.  Louis — Rev.  James  M.  Proctor  Tells  of  His 
Trials— Rev.  M.  M.  Pugh— His  Useful  Life— Tells  of  His 
Persecution  During  the  War — Brutal  Murder  of  Rev. 
Green  Woods — A  Detailed  Account  of  That  Dreadful 
Affair  by  His  Own  Daughter 69 

CHAPTER  V. 

ST.    LOUIS    CONFERENCE. 

No  Missouri  or  St.  Louis  Conference  Session  This  Year — 
The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  a  State  of  Consternation 
and  Disorganization — Loyal  State  and  Loyal  Church — 
United  and  Concentrated  Efforts  at  the  Annihilation  of 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South— "You  Are  the  Man  We  Are 
After" — Seizure  of  the  Houses  of  Worship  Belonging 


Contents.  1 1 

PAGE 

to  Our  Church— Her  Property,  for  Which  She  Paid  Her 
Money,  and  in  Which  She  Had  the  Sole  Right  and 
Title  for  Many  Years,  Contested  by  the  M.  E.  Church — 
Church  in  Kansas  City  Taken  Possession  of  by  M.  E. 
Church — Abuse  of  Southern  Methodists  for  Not  Uniting 
•\vith  Them — Some  True  Members  Who  Saved  the 
Church — Murder  of  Rev.  T.  Glanville  and  His  Son — 
Seizure  of  the  Church  at  Independence — Independence 
Female  College — Large  and  Costly  House  of  Worship — 
Good  Parsonage — Rev.  H.  N.  Watts — The  Church  at 
Springfield — Report  of  Committee — Rev.  J.  M.  Breeding.  93 

CHAPTER  VI. 

MISSOURI   CONFERENCE. 

Conference  at  Fulton — No  Bishop  Present — Minute  Busi- 
ness— History  Confined  Chiefly  to  the  Persecution  of  Her 
Ministers  and  Seizure  of  the  Property  Belonging  to  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South — The  Unarmed  and  Innocent  Per- 
secuted at  Their  Homes  and  at  Their  Houses  of  Worship 
— Denying  the  History  Does  Not  Change  the  Facts — 
Murder  of  Rev.  John  L.  Woods,  a  Local  Preacher — Lo- 
cal Preachers  Fill  an  Important  Place  in  the  Church — 
Persecution  of  Rev.  D.  B.  Cooper  Given  by  Dr.  Harris- 
Persecution  of  Rev.  W.  M.  Rush— Troubles  of  Rev.  Ty- 
son Dines,  as  Given  by  Rev.  R.  P.  Farris,  D.D.,  Presby- 
terian Minister — Rev.  James  Penn  and  His  Four  Clerical 
Sons — Severe  Trials  of  Rev.  Jesse  Bird,  as  Stated  by 
Himself — Spiritual  State  of  the  Church,  by  Rev.  F.  A. 
Savage 121 

CHAPTER  VII. 

MISSOURI   CONFERENCE. 

No  Published  Minutes  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  This 
Year — Forty-eighth  Session  of  the  Missouri  Conference 
at  Mexico — Minute  Business — Preachers  Received  Their 
Appointments — Imminent  Danger  Threatens  Them  in 
Every  Direction — Their  Trust  Is  in  God — Reign  of  Ter- 
ror— Cruel  Murder  of  Rev.  Thomas  Johnson — Trials  of 
Martin  L.  Eads  As  Given  by  Himself— Rev.  W.  M. 
Newland  Arrested — Church  at  La  Grange — Rev.  J.  H. 
Pritchett  and  His  Work — The  Palmyra  Meeting  Formed 
an  Era  in  the  History  of  Southern  Methodism 147 


12  Contents. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

MISSOURI   CONFERENCE.  PAGB 

Remove  All  Outside  Restraints,  and  Every  Man  Will  Show 
What  He  Is — Persecution  Continues  under  the  "Test 
Oath  "  of  the  New  Constitution — Ministers  of  the  Gos- 
pel Refuse  to  Take  It — Forty-ninth  Annual  Session  of 
the  Missouri  Conference  at  Hannibal — Minute  Business 
— Six  Deaths  in  the  Conference  During  the  Year:  W. 
G.  Caples,  Edwin  Robinson,  William  Ketron,  John  F. 
Young,  George  L.  Sexton,  and  D.  R.  Smith — Biograph- 
ical Sketch  of  Each  One — Preachers  Blessed  in  Their 
Work — Report  of  a  Committee  of  the  Missouri  Confer- 
ence on  the  State  of  the  Church — Persecution  of  Rev. 
W.  A.  Tarwater — His  Own  Account  of  It — 6V.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate  on  the  State  of  Things — Trial  of 
Rev.  J.  A.  Mumpower — Rev.  John  D.  Vincil — Wise 
Counsel — The  Church  at  Lexington 180 

CHAPTER  IX. 

ST.  LOUIS  CONFERENCE. 

Wise  and  Judicious  Advice  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Ad- 
vocate— No  Printed  Minutes  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Con- 
ference—  Statistical  Information  from  Other  Reliable 
Sources — The  Preachers  Received  Their  Appointments 
Uncomplainingly  and  Went  Forth  to  Their  Fields  of 
Labor  Joyfully— The  Conference  Proceedings  Were 
Such  as  Properly  Pertain  to  a  Purely  Christian  Organi- 
zation— The  Voice  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate 
in  Relation  to  the  Respective  Prerogatives  and  Duties  of 
Church  and  State — Statement  of  Rev.  J.  S.  Frazier — 
Trials  of  Rev.  J.  C.  Williams  and  Rev.  H.  M.  Long- 
Document  of  Rev.  W.  S.  Woodard — Seizure  of  Our 
Church  in  Boonville— Notorious  Murder  of  Rev.  Samuel 
S.  Headlee — Pastoral  Address  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual 
Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South 206 

CHAPTER  X. 

ST.  LOUIS  CONFERENCE. 

The  Sound  of  the  Battle-cry  Is  no  Longer  Heard — Session 
of  the  Conference  at  Lexington — Bishop  Doggett  Pre- 
sided— Statistical  Business— Memoirs  of  J.  T.  Davenport, 


Contents.  13 

PAGE 

W.  H.  Mobley,  L.  Riley,  John  McEwin,  S.  S.  Headlee— 
Rev.  L.  F.  Aspley's  Trials  in  Time  of  the  War — Church 
at  Potosi  Captured — Rev.  J.  C.  Williams  in  Trouble — 
Origin  and  Early  History  of  Methodism  in  St.  Louis — 
Revival  Notice  of  Rev.  W.  L.  Powell  and  Other  Minis- 
isters — A  Description  of  the  Different  Charges  in  St. 
Louis  in  Connection  with  the  Introduction  of  the  Church 
'  Conference  as  a  New  Institution  of  the  Church — Ac- 
counts of  Revivals  by  Rev.  D.  J.  Marquis,  W.  G.  Horn, 
Rev.  J.  A.  Murphy,  and  Others 228 

CHAPTER  XI. 

MISSOURI   CONFERENCE. 

The  Fiftieth  Annual  Session  of  the  Missouri  Conference — 
Statistical  Business — The  Blessings  of  Peace  in  Contrast 
with  the  Evils  of  War — United  as  One  People,  the  Unit- 
ed States  the  Greatest  Nation  on  Earth — Would  Give  a 
High  Christian  Civilization  to  the  World— Is  Not  That 
the  Divine  Purpose ? — Rev.  J.  A.  Mumpower  Speaks  of 
His  Work — Also  Rev.  Thomas  Hurst  and  Rev.  W.  E. 
Dockery — His  Usefulness  and  Persecution — Revival  No- 
tices by  Other  Preachers — Revival  in  a  Sunday-school — 
Rev.  Jesse  Bird's  Work — Church  at  Glasgow — Work  of 
Rev.  A.  Monroe,  Presiding  Elder  of  Fayette  District — 
Chillicothe  Station,  Rev.  S.  W.  Cope,  Pastor— Revival 
Notice  by  Rev.  John  D.  Vincil — Work  on  St.  Joseph  Dis- 
trict by  Rev.  W.  M.  Rush,  Presiding  Elder — Trials  of 
Rev.  Jesse  Faubion  During  the  Internecine  War — Also 
of  Rev.  S.  J.  Burgin — Revivals  Reported  from  All  Parts 
of  the  Conference — Also  a  Revival  of  Building  Many 
Houses  of  Worship  in  Different  Portions  of  the  Country  254 

CHAPTER  XII. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Statistical  Business — Increase  of  Membership — Eighty-sev- 
en Preachers  Receive  Their  Appointments — Biography 
of  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples — Incident  in  the  Early  History  of 
Bishop  Marvin — A  Good  Report  of  Chillicothe  District, 
by  Rev.  W.  E.  Dockery — Sketch  of  Rev,  E.  R.  Miller's 
Life  and  Work,  by  Himself— Rev.  T.  B.  King  Gives  a 
Good  Report  of  His  Field  of  Labor — Other  Interesting 
Accounts  of  Revivals  by  Revs.  D.  C.  Blackwell,  J.  R. 
Taylor,  and  Other  Preachers 284 


14  Contents. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

ST.    LOUIS    CONFERENCE.  PAGE 

The  Ministers  Addressing  Themselves  Earnestly  to  the 
Work  of  Rebuilding  the  "  Waste  Places  of  Zion"  in 
Missouri — Session  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  Held  by 
Bishop  Marvin  at  Kansas  City;  W.  M.  Prottsman,  Sec- 
retary— Usual  Statistics — Memoir  of  Rev.  H.  E.  Smith 
— Rev.  J.  S.  Frazier  Speaks  Interestingly  of  the  Church 
- — Rev.  J.  W.  Cunningham  Visits  the  Southern  Methodist 
Charges  in  St.  Louis  —  South-west  Missouri,  by  Rev.  H. 
W.  Webster — Multum  in  Parvo — Origin,  in  this  Country, 
of  the  Different  Christian  Denominations,  and  Their 
Respective  Status — What  the  Character  of  the  Ministers 
of  the  Gospel  Should  Be 310 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Fifty-second  Session  of  the  Missouri  Conference  Held  by 
Bishop  Kavanaugh  at  Weston;  J.  D.  Vincil,  Secretary 
— Our  Church  -  house  a  Large  and  Splendid  Edifice — 
Weston  Is  Full  of  Good  Houses  of  Worship — Institution 
of  Learning  Founded  by  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples,  but  Now 
Belongs  to  Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis — The  Conference  Full  to 
Overflowing — Influence  and  Popularity  of  the  Bishop — 
Good  Statistical  Report — Increase  of  Members  Nearly 
Thirty-five  Hundred — Great  Improvement  in  Sunday- 
school  Work — Should  Be  As  Many  Scholars  in  Sunday- 
school  As  Members  in  the  Church — Dr.  W.  G.  Miller 
Reports  Favorably  of  Weston  Female  College — Rev.  D. 
A.  Leeper's  Funeral  Preached  during  Conference  by 
Bishop  Kavanaugh — His  Memoir — Rev.  J.  Devlin's  Work 
on  Carrollton  Circuit — Rev.  C.  I.  Van  Deventer's  Life 
and  Work,  by  Himself — Our  Church  and  Moberly — 
Rev.  J.  A.  Mumpower's  Life  and  Work,  by  Himself — 
Rev.  George  C.  Light,  D.D 334 

CHAPTER  XV. 

ST.  LOUIS   CONFERENCE. 

At  Jefferson  City,  Bishop  Kavanaugh  Presiding;  W.  M. 
Prottsman,  Secretary — Preaching  at  the  Capitol  on  the 
Sabbath  by  the  Bishop — An  Occasion  of  Unusual  Interest 


Contents.  15 

PAGE 

— Statistical  Reports  Favorable— Increase  of  Member- 
ship 2,000 — Missionary  Anniversary  a  Success — Mission- 
ary Cause  Growing  in  Interest  —  Also  an  Advance 
Movement  in  the  Sunday-school  Interests  —  One  Hun- 
dred and  Forty-six  Church-houses — Dr.  W.  A.  Smith 
Delivered  an  Address  on  Education  in  the  Interest  of 
Central  College — Education  on  Upward  Grade — South- 
east Missouri  —  Also  South-western  Missouri  —  Same 
Country  Spoken  of  by  Alonzo  Dante— Rev.  J.  A.  Mur- 
phy on  Revival  Interests — Future  Prospects  of  Kansas 
City — A  Voice  from  South-west  Missouri  Again — New 
Madrid  Circuit — Marvin  Camp-ground,  Near  St.  Louis.  361 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Bishop  Pierce,  President;  J.  D.  Vincil,  Secretary — Schools 
and  Colleges  Doing  Well— Interest  in  Missionary  Cause 
— Sunday-schools  Improving— Church  Literature  Cir-  ( 
culated— Death  of  Rev.  Henry  H.  Hedgpeth— His  Mem- 
oir— District  Reports  of  Presiding  Elders  Contain  His- 
toric Information — Report  of  Plattsburg  District,  by 
Rev.  S.  W.  Cope — Report  of  St.  Charles  District,  by 
Rev.  A.  Monroe — An  Autobiographical  Sketch  of  the 
Life  and  Labors  of  J.  H.  Ledbetter — His  Position  in  the 
Ministry — A  Biographical  Sketch  of  Rev.  George  J. 
Warren,  Given  by  Himself — The  Life  and  Character 
of  Rev.  John  Thatcher,  by  Rev.  G.  W.  Hughes 382 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Rev.  Abraham  Millice,  the  Oddity,  Known  to  This  Present 
Writer  as  the  Most  Eccentric  Person  He  Ever  Saw — 
Humorous  Incidents  When  Holding  Meetings  with  Him 
— An  Account  of  His  Ministerial  Life,  by  J.  B.  Landreth 
— Millice  Forced  His  Landlord  to  Let  Him  Have  Prayer 
with  Him  and  His  Family— His  Cave  Church— His  Over- 
shot Mill,  etc. — M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  Callaway  Coun- 
ty, Mo.,  by  Rev.  George  W.  Penn — Fulton  Station- 
Pleasant  Grove  Church — Prairie  Chapel — Miller's  Creek 
Church  —  Prospect  Church  —  Shiloh  Church  —  Mount 
Pleasant  Church  —  Williamsburg  Church  —  Reedsville 
Church 407 


i6  Contents. 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

ST.   LOUIS   CONFERENCE.  PAGE 

The  Minute  Business  and  Statistical  Reports — Bishop  Mar- 
vin's Travels  in  South-west  Missouri — Pleasant  Hill — 
Church  Dedication — Harrisonville — Nevada  City — Red 
Oak  Camp-ground — Granby  District  Conference — Rea- 
son for  no  More  Missions  on  the  District — The  Editor 
of  the  Advocate  Doctored — Reorganization  in  the  South- 
west— The  Strength  of  the  Church  in  That  Part  of  the 
State — Report  of  Lexington  District,  by  Rev.  J.  R.  Ben- 
nett— Warrensburg  Circuit,  Rev.  W.  J.  Brown,  Pastor 
— Warrensburg  Station,  Rev.  C.  C.  Woods  in  Charge — 
Warsaw  Circuit,  Rev.  R.  C.  Meek,  Pastor — Clinton  Cir- 
cuit, Rev.  J.  B.  Wooldridge,  Pastor — Dover  Circuit,  Rev. 
N.  M.  Talbott  in  Charge— Saline  Circuit,  Rev.  W.  S. 
Woodard,  Pastor  —  Waverly  Station,  W.  F.  Mister, 
Pastor — Lexington  Station,  Rev.  W.  F.  Camp,  Pastor — 
St.  Louis  District,  Rev.  Joseph  Boyle,  Presiding  Elder — 
First  Church,  Dr.  Clinton,  Pastor — Centenary,  Rev.  C. 
D.  N.  Campbell,  Pastor — St.  John's,  F.  A.  Morris,  Pastor 
— Kirkwood,  Rev.  Robinson,  Pastor — The  Autobiogra- 
phy of  Rev.  W.  S.  Woodard  —  Rev.  J.  C.  Berryman 
Gives  an  Account  of  the  Charleston  District — Fort  Scott 
— Sedalia — Travels  of  Rev.  L.  M.  Lewis  through  South- 
east Missouri 419 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

EDUCATIONAL. 

The  Age  in  Which  We  Live  Demands  of  the  Church  a 
High,  Thorough,  Christian  Education,  to  Combat  the 
False  Theories  of  Scientific  Infidelity  and  Materialistic 
Atheism — Historic  Sketch  of  Central  College,  Located 
at  Fayette,  Mo. — Historic  Sketch  of  Central  Female 
College,  Located  at  Lexington,  Mo. — Historic  Sketch  of 
Woodlawn  Seminary,  Located  near  O'Fallon,  Mo. — Brief 
Notices  of  Howard  College,  at  Fayette,  Mo.,  and  St. 
Charles  College,  Located  at  St.  Charles,  Mo. — Other  In- 
stitutions   / 


METHODISM  IN  MISSOURI. 


CHAPTER  I. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

t 

Our  History  Commences  Simultaneously  with  the  Civil  War — 
The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Charged  with  Being  the  Cause  of 
the  Rebellion — A  Malicious  Purpose  to  Destroy  Said  Church 
— Cruel  Persecution — Maintained  Her  Religious  Integrity 
through  the  Severest  Persecution — True  Servants  of  God  Al- 
ways Persecuted — The  Prophets,  the  Son  of  God,  the  Apostles, 
the  Christians  in  the  Dark  Ages — The  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
Cannot  Ignore  Her  History  during  the  War ;  Others  Make  the 
History,  the  Historian  Writes  It — Forty-fifth  Session  Missouri 
Conference — Death  of  Rev.  B.  S.  Ashby — Prosperous  Confer- 
ence Year — Preachers  Non-political — St.  Louis  Christian  Ad- 
vocate— Fasting  and  Prayer  for  Our  Common  Country — Three 
Important  Topics:  Our  Country,  Our  Government,  and  Our 
Religion — Great  Suffering  on  the  Border  Line  next  to  Kansas — • 
Rev.  N.  Scarritt — Utterance  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 

IT  is  a  source  of  sincere  and  deep  regret  that  we 
are  under  the  necessity  of  commencing  and 
pursuing  the  history  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
through  a  long,  sanguinary,  and  destructive  civil 
war,  which  visited  with  wreck  and  ruin  our 
once  peaceful,  prosperous,  and  happy  State.  It  is 
marvelously  strange,  and  subsequent  developments 
make  it  more  strange,  that  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  should  have  been  charged  with  the  cause 
of  the  rebellion,  and  consequently  pursued  during 
the  entire  internecine  war  with  a  malicious  and 
2  (17) 


i8  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1 860-61. 

vindictive  intent  to  accomplish  her  utter  overthrow 
and  destruction,  But  while  passing  through  the 
fiery  ordeal  of  four  years'  cruel  and  unrelenting 
persecution,  scourged,  peeled,  and  scathed,  she 
maintained  her  Christian  character  and  unswerv- 
ing fidelity  to  God,  without  compromising  a  single 
principle  of  her  evangelical  faith.  She  came  forth 
out  of  it  all,  cleansed  and  purified,  bright  and  bur- 
nished, like  the  pure  gold  to  which  the  purifying 
power  of  fire  has  been  applied — the  better  pre- 
pared for  a  holier  life  and  a  more  complete  conse- 
cration to  the  service  of  God. 

Nor  should  we  think  strange  of  this  persecution. 
Are  not  the  true  and  faithful  followers  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  called  to  suffer  with  him  in  this 
wicked  world?  Indeed,  has  not  the  history  of 
the  true  Church  of  God  been  written  in  blood 
through  all  the  past  ages?  and  has  not  his  spirit- 
ual Church  always  been  the  object  of  the  implaca- 
ble hate  and  cruel  persecution  of  the  world,  the 
flesh,  and  the  devil?  In  the  very  nature  of  the 
case  it  cannot  be  otherwise.  Did  not  the  irrepress- 
ible conflict  commence  in  Eden?  And  has  it  not 
continued  with  no  abatement,  but  with  increasing 
virulence,  ever  since  Cain  slew  Abel?  Let  the 
Apostle  Paul  tell  how  the  faithful  servants  of  God 
were  persecuted  under  the  Old  Testament  dispen- 
sation: "  They  had  trials  of  cruel  mockings  and 
scourgings,  yea,  moreover  of  bonds  and  imprison- 
ments. They  were  stoned,  they  were  sawn  asun- 
der, were  tempted,  were  slain  with  the  sword: 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  19 

they  wandered  about  in  sheep-skins  and  in  goat- 
skins; being  destitute,  afflicted,  tormented;  of 
whom  the  world  was  not  worthy;  they  wandered 
in  deserts  and  mountains,  and  in  dens  and  caves 
of  the  earth."  We  see  the  three  Hebrew  children 
thrust  into  the  fiery  furnace  because  they  would 
not  bow  the  knee  to  the  idol  of  Nebuchadnezzar. 
We  see  Daniel  cast  into  the  lions'  den  because  he 
would  pray  to  his  God.  Thus  suffered  the  right- 
eous people  of  God  through  the  cycles  of  centuries 
until  the  advent  of  the  Messiah,  the  Lord's  Christ. 

How  did  they  receive  the  Son  of  God,  who  is 
"  the  brightness  of  his  Father's  glory  and  the  ex- 
press image  of  his  person,"  and  who  came  on 
the  mission  of  divine  benevolence  for  the  redemp- 
tion of  a  lost  and  ruined  world?  How  did  the 
Jewish  nation  receive  him  ?  With  cordial  welcome 
and  demonstrations  of  joy  and  rejoicing?  No. 
Did  the  people  hail  him  their  Prince  and  Saviour? 
No;  he  came  to  his  own,  and  his  own  received 
him  not.  They  gave  him  no  place  in  their  hearts, 
nor  in  their  homes.  They  spurned  him  from  their 
presence,  saying:  "We  will  not  have  this  man  to 
reign  over  us.  Away  with  him  !  "  And  from  that 
hour  he  was  despised  and  rejected,  maligned  and 
persecuted  with  a  hellish  hate  that  culminated  in 
his  death. 

That  the  people  of  God  are  hated  and  perse- 
cuted by  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil  is  what 
might  be  expected,  for  they  are  in  direct  antago- 
nism at  every  point,  and  between  them  there  is  a 


2O  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

perpetual  warfare;  but  that  they  should  be  de- 
spised and  persecuted  by  those  who  claim  to  be 
the  Church  is  an  inexplicable  mystery,  something 
we  cannot  understand.  Who  slew  the  prophets? 
Jerusalem,  representing  the  Church.  Who  falsely 
accused,  condemned,  and  crucified  our  Lord? 
The  Jewish  Church,  Annas  and  Caiaphas,  the  of- 
ficiating high  priests  at  the  altar  of  God,  and  the 
great  Sanhedrim,  to  whom  the  interests  of  the 
Church  were  committed,  and  the  multitude  of  the 
Jewish  people,  all  combined  to  make  sure  his 
death.  Did  not  Pontius  Pilate,  the  Roman  Gov- 
ernor, who  was  not  a  Jew,  manifest  a  disposition 
to  release  Jesus,  calling  him  that  innocent  man, 
saying  that  he  saw  nothing  in  him  worthy  of 
death?  But  who  were  they  that  cried  out  the 
more:  "  Crucify  him !  crucify  him?"  The  high 
priests,  and  the  members  of  the  Sanhedrim,  and 
the  multitudinous  Jewish  rabble.  Again,  by  whom 
were  many  of  the  apostles  killed?  By  whom  was 
the  sainted  Stephen  stoned  to  death?  Was  it  not 
by  the  infuriated  members  of  the  Jewish  Church? 
By  whom  did  the  pure,  holy,  consecrated  followers 
of  Jesus,  in  the  dark  and  middle  ages,  suffer  per- 
secution and  martyrdom  by  hundreds  and  multi- 
plied thousands?  Was  it  not  by  the  Church  of 
Rome?  Coming  to  our  own  country,  during  the 
civil  war,  did  not  many  faithful  Christian  ministers 
and  laymen  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  suffer 
cruel  persecution,  the  destruction  of  all  their 
earthly  possessions,  banishment,  imprisonment, 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  21 

and  death  by  her  sister  Church  of  the  same  origin 
and  name? 

Here  we  would  gladly  let  the  curtain  fall,  if  by 
so  doing  it  would  blot  out  forever  the  terrible  his- 
tory of  the  internecine  war;  but  this  it  cannot  do, 
for  history  is  a  true  record  of  facts,  and  is  as  inex- 
tinguishable, indestructible  as  truth  itself. 

It  would  be  unpardonable  ingratitude  to  deny 
those  faithful  servants  of  God  who  withstood  evil, 
and  suffered  persecution  to  the  last  and  to  the 
death,  to  refuse  them  a  place  in  the  history  of  that 
Church  they  loved  dearer  than  life,  and  in  whose 
Cause  they  sacrificed  their  all.  They  deserve  to 
have  an  imperishable  monument  as  high  as  heaven 
in  honor  of  their  Christian  heroism.  Their  names 
should  live  in  the  Church  of  Christ  until  time  shall 
be  no  more. 

While  we  have  no  disposition  whatever  to  ex- 
cite unkiud  or  unchristian  feelings  on  the  part  of 
any  person  or  persons,  fidelity  to  truth  and  justice 
requires  the  statements  of  facts  and  events  just  as 
they  occurred,  uninfluenced  by  partiality  or  preju- 
dice, though  the  facts  may  be  very  revolting  to 
our  feelings.  Indeed,  truth,  and  not  feeling, 
should  be  the  controlling  principle  of  the  historian. 
He  should  give  a  correct  statement  of  things  as 
they  actually  occurred — good  or  bad,  right  or 
wrong,  virtuous  or  vicious.  The  bad  should  be 
told  as  well  as  the  good,  let  the  truth  hit  whom  it 
may.  Such  is  Biblical  history.  It  records  a 
man's  vices  as  well  as  his  virtues,  his  bad  deeds  as 


22  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

well  as  his  good  ones.  The  eminent  position  of 
the  person,  though  highly  distinguished  for  his 
moral  rectitude  and  Christian  character,  does  not 
protect  him.  When  Abraham,  the  father  of  the 
faithful,  and  the  friend  of  God,  and  the  most  illus- 
trious person  in  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures, 
under  the  pressure  of  very  peculiar  circumstances, 
prevaricated,  the  Bible  did  not  withhold  the  fact, 
but  published  it  to  the  world.  When  the  pious 
and  devout  David  unwarily  yielded  to  temptation, 
and  committed  two  of  the  worst  sins  in  the  moral 
code,  the  word  of  God  exposed  his  guilt,  and  not 
until  deep,  thorough,  and  genuine  repentance  did 
he  realize  his  restoration  to  the  divine  favor. 
Profane  history  should  be  no  less  impartial  and 
truthful  than  sacred  history. 

Let  it  be  understood  that  this  historian  did  not 
make  the  bloody  history  of  wail  and  woe,  of  car- 
nage and  death,  but  it  becomes  his  duty  to  write  it 
after  it  has  been  made  by  others,  whose  boastful 
language  was:  "  We  are  making  history."  This, 
too,  was  in  connection  with  the  cruel  persecution 
of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  which,  as  a  Church, 
was  unsectional,  unpolitical,  and  loyal  to  the  Con- 
stitution and  government  of  our  country.  There 
were  some  exceptions,  but  most  of  them  were 
driven  by  persecution  to  the  necessity  of  joining 
the  Confederates  for  personal  safety.  Yes,  hun- 
dreds went  to  Price's  army  because  it  was  death 
to  stay  at  home.  Their  loyalty  to  the  constitution- 
al government  of  the  country  was  no  protection. 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  23 

MISSOURI   CONFERENCE. 

Bishop  Kavanaugh  held  the  Forty-fifth  Session 
of  the  Missouri  Annual  Conference  at  St.  Charles, 
Mo.,  September  12-19,  I86o.  The  Conference 
was  opened  with  religious  service,  conducted  by 
the  presiding  officer.  Rev.  E.  K.  Miller  was 
elected  Secretary.  W.  T.  Luckey,  O.  P.  Noble, 
Jacob  McEwin,  Adolphus  Green,  Isaac  Kelsoe, 
Thomas  F.  C.  James,  William  C.  Martin,  James 
M.  Tutt,  Samuel  Alexander,  Walter  C.  Fowler, 
E.  McKendree  Bounds,  and  Joseph  Card  were 
admitted  on  trial.  William  H.  Albright,  William 
Collett,  O.  R.  Bouton,  Edward  H.  Hudson,  Jacob 
Agee,  Henry  B.  Watson,  Henry  G.  McEwin,  and 
Henry  H.  Dodd  remained  on  trial.  Admitted  into 
full  connection:  George  W.  Penn,  Norman  P. 
Halsey,  John  F.  Shore,  Robert  M.  Leaton,  John 
Stone,  John  R.  Taylor,  Robert  R.  Baldwin.  The 
following  traveling  preachers  were  elected  and  or- 
dained deacons:  George  W.  Penn,  Norman  P. 
Halsey,  John  F.  Shores,  Robert  M.  Leaton,  John 
R.  Taylor,  Robert  R.  Baldwin,  and  Wesley  W. 
McMurry.  Traveling  preachers  elected  and  or- 
dained elders:  William  A.  Tarwater,  David  R. 
Shackelford,  Jesse  Faubion,  John  W.  Penn. 
Local  preachers  elected  and  ordained  deacons: 
Thomas  F.  C.  James,  Orin  R.  Bouton,  William 
C.  Martin.  Local  preacher  elected  and  ordained 
elder:  William  White. 

Rev.  Benjamin  S.  Ashby  was  reported  in  reply 
to  the  question,  "Who  died  this  year?"  andthefol- 


24  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

lowing  is  his  memoir  as  read  before  the  Confer- 
ence: 

BENJAMIN  ASHBY  was  a  native  of  Kentucky.  We  know 
nothing  definitely  of  his  early  history,  except  that  he  emigrated  to 
Missouri  in  1818,  being  then  about  twenty-one  years  of  age.  At 
this  time  he  was  a  licensed  local  preacher,  and  came  to  Missouri 
with  the  intention  of  entering  at  once  the  traveling  connection; 
but  his  aged,  widowed  mother  coming  soon  after,  he  deferred  en- 
tering upon  the  itinerant  work  until  he  had  provided  for  her  com- 
fort. In  1823  he  received  his  first  appointment  to  the  New  Mad- 
rid Circuit;  in  1824,  La  Mine;  1825,  Cedar  Creek;  1826,  St. 
Louis  Circuit;  1827  and  1828,  Buffalo;  1829,  Fishing  River.  In 
1830  he  received  a  superannuated  relation,  in  which  relation  he 
continued  until  he  located  in  the  year  1834.  In  X^4S  ne  was  re' 
admitted  into  the  traveling  connection,  and  was  appointed  to  the 
Brunswick  District.  In  1846  and  1847  he  traveled  the  Keytesville 
Circuit;  in  1848  was  stationed  at  Palmyra;  in  1849,  Portland  Cir- 
cuit; in  1850  and  1851,  the  Richmond  District;  in  1852  and  1853 
he  traveled  the  Savannah  District;  in  1854,  stationed  at  Clarksville 
and  Paynesville;  in  1855,  stationed  at  Canton.  In  1856  he  was 
appointed  as  supernumerary  to  Brunswick  Station;  in  1857  his 
strength  was  so  far  exhausted  that  he  took  a  superannuated  re- 
lation, which  relation  he  retained  until  his  death.  He  was  a  del- 
egate to  the  General  Conference  in  1854,  and  was  noted  for  the 
soundness  of  his  judgment  and  the  practical  character  of  his 
views  on  all  matters  upon  which  he  was  called  to  deliberate. 
Brother  Ashby  was  a  zealous,  faithful  preacher;  in  the  pulpit  he 
was  always  sound,  instructive,  and  sometimes  powerful.  He  was 
a  man  of  prayer,  being  much  on  his  knees  in  private  as  well  as  in 
public.  On  Wednesday,  August  29,  1860,  he  preached  twice,  de- 
livering his  last  sermon  on  Matthew  xi.  28,  29.  Near  the  close  of 
the  sermon  he  was  greatly  blessed;  related  his  experience,  regret- 
ting all  unfaithfulness ;  he  affirmed  that  if  he  had  a  thousand  lives 
he  would  give  them  all  to  the  ministry ;  and  that  he  would  like  to 
die  at  the  altar  of  God.  The  following  day  he  was  apparently  in 
the  enjoyment  of  his  usual  health,  attending  Church  morning  and 
night.  After  the  sermon  in  the  evening  he  talked  with  the  peni- 
tents for  nearly  an  hour.  It  was  intimated  to  him  that  it  was  time 
to  close.  He  answered  that  it  was,  but  that  he  wanted  to  pray 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  25 

first.  The  hymn  being  concluded,  he  called  upon  the  congrega- 
tion to  join  him  in  prayer.  He  led  the  prayer  till  near  its  close, 
when  he  was  observed  to  pause  a  moment,  and  then  to  attempt  to 
speak,  but  his  voice  was  faint  as  one  going  to  sleep.  He  fell  to 
the  floor.  The  attack  was  thought  to  be  epilepsy.  In  twenty 
minutes  he  so  far  revived  as  to  be  able  to  swallow  a  little  water, 
and  with  much  effort  to  speak  a  few  words,  but  was  soon  taken 
with  another  spasm,  in  which,  for  a  few  minutes,  he  appeared  to 
be  in  great  distress.  But  this  soon  passed  off,  and  at  fifteen  min- 
utes past  twelve  o'clock,  on  the  morning  of  the  3ist,  he  slept  in 
Jesus  without  a  struggle  or  a  groan.  His  remains  were  interred 
at  Keytesville. 

The  Conference  session  was  a  pleasant  one. 
The  preachers  made  encouraging  reports  from 
their  respective  fields  of  labor.  God  had  been 
with  them  during  the  year,  making  the  word 
preached  by  them  his  own  power  in  the  salvation 
of  the  people.  Revivals  were  numerous  and  ex- 
tensive throughout  the  bounds  of  the  Conference. 
They  reported  a  membership  of  17,717,  with  an 
increase  over  last  year  of  1,516.  God  smiled 
upon  them,  and  they  had  a  prosperous  and  happy 
year  in  the  delightful  work  of  preaching  the  gospel 
and  saving  souls.  But  when  the  Conference  ad- 
journed they  went  to  'their  new  appointments 
with  no  little  anxiety  and  forebodings.  Future 
trouble  was  brewing.  They  saw  a  dark  and  por- 
tentous cloud  rising  in  the  political  horizon  of  our 
country;  already  vivid  flashes  of  lightning  could 
be  seen,  and  the  roar  of  coarse  and  pealing  thun- 
der could  be  heard,  louder  and  louder,  indicating 
the  approach  of  the  war  cloud.  Nor  were  they 
mistaken.  They  soon  realized  their  fearful  apprer 


26  Methodism  in  Missouri.  iS6o-6i. 

hensions,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  history  of  the 
Church  during  the  internecine  war.  It  is  a  well- 
known  fact  that  the  preachers  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  who  had  charge  of  Churches  in 
Missouri  did,  during  the  Civil  War,  confine  them- 
selves to  their  pulpit  ministrations  and  pastoral 
duties,  and  did  all  in  their  power  to  promote 
kind  feeling,  peace,  and  harmony  in  their  con- 
gregations and  among  the  people  with  whom 
they  lived.  So  far  as  the  knowledge  of  this  writer 
extends,  the  subject  of  politics  was  not  mentioned 
in  their  pulpits.  Their  influence  in  the  Church 
and  in  the  community  was  against  disorder  and 
strife,  and  in  favor  of  public  peace. 

The  following  remarks  of  another  will  be  read 
with  interest: 

The  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate,  edited  by  Rev.  D.  R.  Mc- 
Anally,  D.D.,  contained  a  series  of  very  able  editorials,  running 
through  April  and  a  part  of  May,  1861,  on  "The  Times,"  "The 
Duty  of  Christian  Men,"  "The  Time  for  Prayer,"  "To  the  Min- 
isters and  Members  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  Missouri  and 
Kansas,"  "A  Word  to  Our  Patrons  and  Friends,"  and  kindred 
topics,  in  which  the  'people  were  warned  of  the  character  of  the 
danger  that  threatened,  advised  to  remain  at  home,  cultivate  their 
lands,  and  pursue  their  avocations  of  peace  and  piety  in  the  fear 
of  God  as  the  best  means  of  promoting  good  order  in  the  State. 

How  mucli  of  suffering  might  have  been  prevented  and  how 
many  thousands  of  valuable  lives  might  have  been  spared  to  the 
country,  to  say  nothing  of  the  millions  of  treasure,  had  the  advice 
of  .that  paper  been  taken  and  the  timely  warnings  of  its  honored 
editor  been  heeded! 

Dr.  McAnally's  ideas  of  right  and  wrong,  of  truth  and  error,  of 
justice  and  righteousness,  were  derived  from  the  old  standard. 
He  had  no  patience  with  the  new  standard  of  virtue  that  grew  out 
of  party  fanaticism  and  war  expediencies;  new-fangled  notions, 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  27 

dissimulations,  prevarication,  and  moral  travesty  "he  could  not 
away  with  it."  He  had  not  so  learned  the  responsibilities  of  pub- 
lic journalism,  and  hence  his  simple-hearted  appreciation  of  right 
led  him  to  expose  the  wrong  wherever  it  existed.  His  honesty 
required  him  to  expose  the  wide-spread  dishonesty  of  the  times. 
His  simple  love  of  truth  caused  him  to  make  honest  and  truthful 
reports  of  the  "  news  of  the  week  "  according  to  the  actual  facts, 
without  reference  to  the  interest  of  this  party  or  that  party, 'this 
army  or  that,  this  commanding  officer  or  that.  In  this  his  paper 
presented  such  a  contrast  with  the  press  generally  that  it  was 
sought  and  read  by  thousands  of  both  parties,  and  accepted  by  the 
unprejudiced  as  the  most  reliable  paper  then  published.  But, 
because  it  was  truthful,  and  honest,  and  candid,  and  popular,  and 
reliable,  it  was  pronounced  disloyal  and  dangerous;  and  because 
it  would  not  serve  the  cause  of  cruelty,  confiscation,  conflagra- 
tion, desolation,  and  destruction ;  and,  with  the  venom  of  a  viper, 
hound  on  the  barbarous  hordes  with  fire  and  sword  to  the  com- 
mission of  the  foulest  deeds  of  war ;  nor  with  sanctimonious  hy- 
pocrisy sanctify  the  implements  and  instruments  of  blood  and 
death  and  canonize  the  vilest  thieves,  and  robbers,  and  murderers — 
for  these  reasons  the  paper  was  set  down  by  the  enemies  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South,  as  in  the  interest  of  treason  and  rebellion, 
and  by  them  the  military  authorities  were  induced  to  suppress  the 
paper,  and  arrest  and  imprison  its  editor.  Of  his  arrest  and  long 
confinement  in  the  Myrtle  Street  Military  Prison,  St.  Louis,  the 
reader  will  be  more  fully  informed  hereafter.* 

The  ministers  of  the  Southern  Methodist  Church 
not  only  kept  themselves  aloof  from  the  political 
strife  of  the  country,  but  appointed  days  of  pub- 
lic humiliation  and  prayer,  that  the  evils  of  war 
might  be  averted  and  peace  and  tranquillity  might 
be  restored  to  the  entire  country.  This  writer  di- 
rects the  attention  of  the  reader  to  the  St.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate  of  June  13,  1861: 

*Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


28  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

FASTING  AND  PRAYER. 

To  the  Ministers  and  Members  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  the  Missouri 
and  St.  Louis  Conferences. 

Dear  Brethren  and  Sisters :  Whereas  our  once  happy  and 
prosperous  country  is  now  involved  in  the  calamities  of  a  civil 
war,  which  threatens  ruin  to  all  our  cherished  hopes  and  interests; 
and  ^whereas  God  alone,  in  the  exercise  of  his  sovereign  and  gra- 
cious dispensations,  can  avert  the  terrible  evil;  and  as  he  has 
promised  to  be  inquired  of  by  those  that  fear  him,  and  to  inter- 
pose for  those  who  reverently  and  submissively  supplicate  his 
mercy  and  seek  his  divine  interposition,  it  therefore  becomes  to 
every  Christian  community  both  a  high  privilege  and  solemn 
duty,  in  such  times  of  serious  and  alarming  trials,  humbly  and 
reverently  to  prostrate  themselves  before  the  mercy-seat  and  sup- 
plicate the  aid  and  deliverance  which  God  only  can  afford. 

And  as  I  have  been  requested  by  many  ministers  and  laymen 
of  both  Conferences  (in  view  of  my  seniority  as  a  minister)  to  des- 
ignate and  recommend  a  day  of  fasting  and  prayer,  I  would,  there- 
fore, most  respectfully  recommend  that  Wednesday,  the  third  day 
of  July,  be  set  apart  and  observed  for  this  solemn  purpose,  and 
that  appropriate  religious  services  be  held  in  all  our  places  of  wor- 
ship; and,  in  accordance  with  the  expressed  wishes  of  many,  and, 
as  I  think,  in  accordance  with  manifest  propriety,  I  tender  most 
cordially,  and  in  behalf  of  the  whole  Church,  an  invitation  to  all 
Christian  people  of  the  State  to  unite  with  us  on  that  day,  humbly 
and  devoutly  to  supplicate  in  behalf  of  our  common  country  that 
God,  who  can  turn  the  hearts  of  men  as  the  streams  in  the  South, 
•would  forgive  our  sins  and  in  his  merciful  providence  hasten  the 
return  of  peace  to  our  country,  our  entire  country. 

ANDREW  MONROE. 

Fayette,  Mo., -June  5,  1861. 

The  undersigned  do  most  cordially  approve  the  above  proposi- 
tion, and  earnestly  recommend  its  observance  throughout  the 
State.  JOSEPH  BOYLE 

E.  M.  MARVIN, 
H.  S.  WATTS, 

P.  M.  PlNCKARD. 

St.  Louis,  Mo.,  June  12,  1861. 

The   call  of   the  ministers    upon  the   Christian 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  29 

people  to  earnest  and  importunate  prayer  all  over 
the  State  of  Missouri  was  repeated  again  and 
again.  Nor  was  the  call  made  in  vain.  There 
was  a  cordial  and  hearty  response  by  the  lovers  of 
the  Church  and  the  true  followers  of  Christ  in  • 
every  section  of  the  country.  What  a  sublime 
scene  to  contemplate !  See  the  embassadors  of 
Christ,  who  had  consecrated  themselves  to  the  serv- 
ice of  God,  who  had  placed  their  lives  and  their 
all  upon  his  sacred  altar  to  do  or  to  suffer  the  di- 
vine will,  whatever  that  will  might  be,  assembled 
with  the  religious  people  to  whom  they  had 
preached  the  gospel  of  peace  and  with  whom  they 
had  worshiped  many  years,  for  the  purpose  of  sup- 
plicating mercy  and  invoking  the  favor  of  God, 
that  he  would  turn  back  the  war-cloud,  speak  to 
the  belligerent  elements,  quell  the  infuriated  pas- 
sions of  men,  stop  the  war,  and  restore  peace  to 
Zion  and  to  their  beloved  country.  Was  it  not  a 
sublime  scene  to  contemplate  ?  They  were  moved 
by  the  grandest  motives,  religious  and  patriotic, 
that  ever  stirred  the  human  heart.  Behold  them 
in  convocations  throughout  the  State,  with  Chris- 
ti'ans  of  other  denominations,  met  to  pray  for  the 
salvation  of  the  Church  and  of  the  country — the 
best  country  and  the  best  civil  government  in  the 
world. 

The  foregoing  remarks  have  suggested  to  our 
mind  three  topics  of  the  deepest  interest  to  every 
Christian,  to  every  patriot,  and  to  every  philan- 
thropist— viz.,  our  country,  our  government,  and 


30  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

our  religion — and  as  they  are  mutually  dependent 
and  clearly  interwoven  with  each  other,  we  ask 
the  indulgence  of  the  reader  to  speak  of  these  top- 
ics respectively  at  some  length. 

In  the  first  place,  God  has  given  us  the  best  civil 
government  in  the  world.  Here  the  writer  may 
premise  that  the  government  is  one  thing  and  the 
administration  of  the  government  is  quite  another 
thing.  The  government  may  be  very  much  abused 
when  it  falls  into  the  hands  of  selfish,  ambitious, 
and  unrighteous  men.  They  may  trample  upon  its 
laws  and  disregard  its  authority,  and  misuse  its 
power.  Let  it  be  understood  that  this  writer  is 
speaking  of  the  government  and  not  of  its  adminis- 
tration. 

The  reader  will  no  doubt  assent  to  his  proposi- 
tion that  it  is  incomparably  superior  to  any  other 
civil  government  in  the  world.  That  government 
which  recognizes  the  sovereignty  of  God,  and 
yields  obedience  to  the  divine  authority  of  the 
Bible,  and  incorporates  in  its  Constitution  the  car- 
dinal principles  of  Christianity,  is  beyond  all  con- 
troversy the  model  government  of  the  world.  It 
is  a  government  of  truth,  justice,  and  honesty, 
"rendering  unto  Cassar  the  things  which  are  Cae- 
sar's, and  unto  God  the  things  which  are  God's" — 
a  government  that  recognizes  the  freedom  of  man 
and  protects  him  in  the  exercise  of  his  inalienable 
rights. 

Nowhere  in  the  world  is  civil  liberty,  which  is 
the  birthright  of  every  man,  enjoyed  as  it  is  in  the 


i86o-6i.  Missouri  Conference.  31 

United  States.  Ours  is  not  only  the  home  of  the 
brave,  but  also  the  land  of  the  free.  In  no  other 
country  has  the  tree  of  liberty  grown  to  such  gi- 
gantic dimensions,  sheltering  beneath  its  wide- 
spread branches  and  shady  foliage  65 ,000,000  peo- 
ple. 

This  government  has  no  castes,  but  gives  to 
every  man  an  equal  chance  with  every  other  man. 
It  stimulates  him  to  noble  deeds  and  urges  him  on- 
ward to  life's  high  aim  and  ends.  He  can  advance 
from  the  humblest  position  in  society  to  the  high- 
est office  in  the  government.  To  be  a  citizen  of 
the  United  States  is  enough  to  inspire  in  him  the 
loftiest  aspirations  for  what  is  noble  and  great. 
We  admire  the  government  that  develops  the  man- 
hood of  its  citizens  and  elevates  them  to  their 
proper  position  in  the  scale  of  God's  intellectual 
and  moral  creatures.  We  are  happy  to  say  that 
such  is  our  government  when  not  perverted  by 
corrupt  men  and  designing  politicians.  The  dan- 
ger that  seriously  threatens  the  safety  of  our  gov- 
ernment is  in  that  direction. 

The  munificent  donor  of  all  blessings  has  also 
given  us  the  greatest  country  in  the  world,  a  sec- 
ond Canaan,  almost  boundless  in  extent,  stretch- 
ing across  the  continent  from  ocean  to  ocean, 
measuring  thousands  of  miles  in  all  directions, 
with  a  rich  and  productive  soil  of  incomparable 
fertility.  In  the  precious  metals  and  in  rich  min- 
eral resources,  where  can  you  find  such  another 
country?  The  United  States  furnish  one-half  the 


32  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

gold  and  silver  of  the  world.  In  one  year  they 
produced  gold  enough  to  make  five  car-loads  and 
silver  enough  for  one  hundred  car-loads.  Coal  is 
abundant  almost  everywhere,  in  mines  inexhaust- 
ible. It  seems  to  be  imbedded  under  the  surface 
of  our  entire  country — fuel  enough  to  meet  all  de- 
mands for  many  centuries  to  come.  In  this  we  see 
the  good  providence  of  God  in  providing  for  us  in 
such  great  abundance  that  which  is  so  essential  to 
our  present  comfort  and  future  prosperity.  Iron, 
too,  the  most  useful  of  all  metals,  is  found  in  every 
State  in  the  Union.  In  Missouri  there  are  hills 
and  mountains  of  iron,  which  can  never  be  ex- 
hausted. The  abundance  of  iron  is  another  dem- 
onstration of  the  goodness  of  God.  Lead  is  very 
plentiful  in  some  of  the  States.  Missouri  produced 
in  one  year  63,000,000  pounds  of  lead. 

Look  at  our  magnificent  rivers,  one  of  which  is 
the  longest  in  the  world,  affording  steam-boat  nav- 
igation for  more  than  three  thousand  miles.  Look, 
too,  at  our  vast  prairies  and  woodlands,  and  grand 
and  majestic  forests,  supplying  the  country  with 
all  kinds  of  timber.  Look,  too,  at  the  agricultural 
productions  of  the  country — grains,  fruits,  hogs, 
cattle,  horses,  and  other  domestic  animals,  in  quan- 
tities defying  all  computation. 

God  has  also  exalted  us  as  a  nation,  in  many  re- 
spects, above  all  the  other  nations  of  the  earth. 
The  English-speaking  people,  or  the  Anglo-Saxon 
race,  is  unquestionably  in  the  lead  of  nations, 
while  the  American  people,  on  account  of  their 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  33 

superiority,  are  in  the  lead  of  every  other  branch 
of  the  Anglo-Saxons.  Great  Britain  herself  must 
yield  the  palm  to  America,  for  the  daughter  has 
outgrown  her  mother.  The  American  people  have 
no  equal  in  enterprise,  energy,  and  push.  They 
move  rapidly,  with  an  increasing  momentum. 
Steam  and  electricity  suit  them  exactly,  because 
they  are  quick  and  powerful.  Speed  and  power 
are  the  prime  factors  of  their  triumphant  success. 
By  steam  they  travel  a  mile  a  minute — faster  than 
the  wind,  unless  it  be  a  tornado.  By  electricity 
they  send  their  messages  with  the  speed  of  light- 
ning. Steam  has  taken  the  place  of  working-men 
and  animals.  It  is  harnessed  and  hitched  to  all 
kinds  of  machines,  and  does  all  kinds  of  work. 
It  has  thrown  hundreds  and  thousands  of  men  out 
of  employment,  and  has  taken  the  bread  out  of  the 
poor  man's  mouth. 

The  progress  of  the  United  States,  in  developing 
the  vast  resources  of  this  country,  is  without  a 
parallel  in  the  history  of  the  world.  How  sluggish 
and  inactive  have  other  nations  been — sometimes 
slowly  advancing,  sometimes  stationary,  and  some- 
times retrograding — each  successive  generation 
moving  in  the  same  groove  and  living  as  their  an- 
cestors did  five  hundred  or  a  thousand  years  be- 
fore them.  China — fossilized  and  petrified  China 
— claims  an  existence  of  several  thousand  years, 
and  is  now,  with  a  few  changes,  what  she  always 
has  been.  The  rapid  progress  of  the  United 
States  has  attracted  the  attention  of  other  coun- 
3 


34  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

tries.  Mr.  Hatton,  of  England,  says:  "Ten  years 
in  the  history  of  America  is  half  a  century  in  Euro- 
pean progress."  This  shows  the  superiority  of 
our  people  and  of  our  country.  In  the  first  place, 
the  country  possesses  all  the  resources  they  need 
to  make  them  a  great  nation.  In  the  second  place, 
they  are  developing  those  resources  with  a 
speed  and  power  hitherto  unknown  to  the  world. 
For  their  manufactories  they  have  an  exhaustless 
supply  of  coal  to  convert  water  into  steam.  The 
country  also  produces  the  raw  material  to  be  man- 
ufactured. They  do  not  have  to  import  them  from 
distant  countries.  Dr.  Strong  says:  "  England 
has  to  travel  three  thousand  miles  for  every  cotton 
ball  she  spins."  But  we  have  the  cotton  at  home; 
also  the  wool,  the  hemp,  the  flax,  the  metals,  all 
kinds  of  wood.  Indeed,  it  is  difficult  to  tell  what 
we  have  not. 

Then,  too,  the  mechanics  and  operatives  in  the 
factories  and  in  all  the  industries  of  the  country 
are  a  superior  class  of  workmen.  They  are  all 
the  time  improving  machinery,  and  making  im- 
portant inventions  and  discoveries.  It  is  stated 
that  "  at  the  International  Electrical  Exposition  at 
Paris,  a  few  years  ago,  five  gold  medals  were  of- 
fered for  the  greatest  inventions  and  discoveries." 
In  this  contest  the  nations  of  the  civilized  world 
were  represented.  How  many  of  the  five  gold 
medals  do  you  suppose  were  awarded  to  those  who 
went  from  this  country?  Just  five!  Yes,  the 
United  States,  in  competition  with  the  world,  took 


i86o-6i.  Missouri  Conference.  35 

all  the  gold  medals  at  Paris  for  inventions  and  dis- 
coveries ! 

We  stated  that  Great  Britain  must  yield  the 
palm  to  America.  Now  for  the  proof:  We  learn 
from  reliable  authority  that  our  mining  industries 
exceed  those  of  Great  Britain  three  per  cent. ; 
that  the  products  of  our  manufactories  in  1880 
were  greater  than  those  of  Great  Britain  by  $650,- 
000,000;  that  the  United  States  Government  issues 
four  times  as  many  patents  as  the  English;  that 
our  wealth  exceeds  hers  by  $276,000,000.  To 
which,  therefore,  belongs  the  prize  banner  of  the 
world  ?  The  question  has  already  been  answered. 
Well  may  the  stars  and  stripes  proudly  wave  over 
every  land  and  sea  to  earth's  remotest  bounds! 

All  that  has  been  said  in  the  foregoing  remarks 
relates  to  the  material  wealth  and  prosperity  of 
our  nation.  At  the  same  time  the  American  peo- 
ple have  not  neglected  their  more  important  nation- 
al interests  of  education  and  Christian  civilization. 
Nowhere  in  the  world  is  education  more  liberally 
patronized.  Intelligence  and  virtue  are  the  corner- 
stones of  our  civil  government  and  the  palladium 
of  our  country.  In  monarchical  and  despotic 
countries  the  people  belong  to  the  government. 
They  are  the  mere  serfs  and  slaves  of  their  mon- 
archs  and  despots,  and  the  more  ignorant  they  are 
the  better  subjects  they  make.  But  in  this  country 
it  is  just  the  reverse.  Here  the  government  be- 
longs to  the  people.  Vox  -populi  is  sovereign,  to 
which  all  must  yield  obedience.  The  people  ap- 


36  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

point  their  officers  from  the  village  squire  to  the 
President.  They  make  their  laws  through  their 
representatives.  In  short,  they  make  the  govern- 
ment what  it  is.  Hence  the  necessity  of  intelli- 
gence and  virtue  for  the  perpetuity  and  prosperity 
of  our  free  institutions. 

Though  there  is  great  corruption  and  wicked- 
ness in  the  country,  yet  we  believe  that  we  have 
the  best  type  of  Christian  civilization  in  the  world. 
Our  religious  ideas  are  more  Biblical,  purer,  less 
mixed  with  rationalism,  materialism,  and  the  vain 
philosophy  of  wicked  men.  Our  Christianity  is 
more  spiritual  and  less  ritualistic.  In  many  parts 
of  Christendom  religion  has  degenerated  into  ec- 
clesiasticism  and  ritualism — nothing  left  but  the 
shell.  When  Christianity  loses  its  spirituality,  all 
is  lost — God,  Jesus  Christ,  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  all 
saving  power  are  lost.  It  becomes  the  religion  of 
man  without  God — a  name,  a  shadow,  a  fantastic 
farce ! 

The  American  people,  however  wicked,  believe 
in  a  spiritual  Christianity  more  than  any  other 
people  in  the  world.  Many  of  them  not  only  be- 
lieve in  it,  but  possess  it  and  enjoy  it.  God  is 
with  them  to  bless,  renovate,  purify,  and  exalt 
them  to  their  proper  position  in  the  scale  of  his  in- 
tellectual and  moral  creatures.  Is  not  this  the  se- 
cret of  our  national  elevation?  Is  not  this  the 
power  behind  the  throne  ?  Is  it  not  righteousness 
that  exalteth  a  nation?  Then  look  not  to  material 
wealth,  to  gold  and  silver,  to  inexhaustible  mines 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  37 

of  mineral  treasures,  not  to  systems  of  railroads 
and  telegraphy,  not  to  steam  and  electricity  for 
the  perpetuation  of  our  national  greatness.  For 
moral  and  political  corruption  will  inevitably  un- 
dermine the  whole  fabric  without  a  spiritual  Chris- 
tianity— the  only  power  in  the  world  that  can  re- 
construct man  and  make  him  good,  honest,  pure, 
just,  and  upright.  Christianity  is  our  only  sheet- 
anchor. 

Under  the  auspices  of  heaven  and  in  the  good 
providence  of  God  we  have  become  a  mighty  peo- 
ple. America  is  the  brightest  star  that  sparkles  in 
the  galaxy  of  nations,  but  our  only  safety  is  a 
pure,  high  Christian  civilization,  in  which  God  is 
known,  loved,  feared,  and  obeyed.  Then  we 
shall  not  fear  the  surging  billows  of  political  cor- 
ruption and  strife;  for  God  will  say:  "  Thus  far 
shalt  thou  go,  and  no  farther."  "  Happy  is  that 
people  whose  God  is  the  Lord." 

The  citizens  of  Missouri  suffered  perhaps  more 
along  the  border  line  of  Kansas  than  in  any  other 
part  of  the  State.  Some  time  before  the  war  the 
people  of  Kansas  manifested  a  strong  feeling  of 
prejudice  against  Missouri  because  she  was  a  slave 
State.  After  the  war  began  some  of  them  gave  un- 
restrained indulgence  to  their  ill  feelings.  During 
the  war  they  had  an  opportunity  of  showing  their 
base  character.  Their  meanness  was  no  longer 
concealed.  They  were  destitute  of  all  principle 
and  all  human  feeling,  ready  for  the  work  of  de- 
struction and  death.  They  were  familiarly  known 


38  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

by  the  name  of  "  Red  Legs  "  and  "  Kansas  Jay- 
hawkers.'  '  They  organized  into  bands  of  freeboot- 
ers and  brigands,  and  made  frequent  raids  in  the 
border  counties  of  Missouri,  to  rob,  to  plunder,  and 
to  kill.  Destitution,  suffering,  and  sorrow  fol- 
lowed in  their  wake.  They  left  behind  them  des- 
olated hearts  and  homes.  They  seemed  to  take 
pleasure  in  persecuting  Southern  Methodist  preach- 
ers, as  you  may  learn  from  a  letter  to  the  St. 
Louis  Christian  Advocate  by  Rev.  N.  Scarritt, 
whose  integrity  cannot  be  doubted,  and  who  was 
presiding  elder  at  that  time.  He  thus  writes: 

In  addition  to  this,  some  of  our  preachers  in  the  southern  por- 
tion of  the  Conference  have  been  compelled  to  quit  the  field  and 
leave  their  work  for  the  present,  on  account  of  the  violence  of 
civil  strife,  so  prevalent  in  that  section. 

Our  preachers  there  have  taken  no  part  in  the  political  ques- 
tions that  are  involving  the  country  in  so  much  trouble.  They 
have  been  peaceable,  law-abiding  citizens,  leaving  politics  alone 
and  devoting  themselves  exclusively  to  the  peaceable  work  of 
preaching  the  peace-making  gospel  of  the  Prince  of  Peace. 

Yet,  though  this  has  been  their  known  and  acknowledged  char- 
acter, it  has  not  been  sufficient  to  protect  them  from  the  rage  of 
fanaticism  and  outlawed  violence.  Several  of  them  have  had  their 
horses  stolen  from  them  by  the  "  Jayhawkers."  Repeated  threats 
of  hanging,  shooting,  etc.,  have  been  made  against  them ;  though 
no  attempt,  so  far  as  we  know,  has  been  made  in  the  form  of  any 
overt  act. 

There  is  a  brief  editorial  in  the  St.  Louis  Chris- 
tian Advocate  of  July  25,  giving  information  of  the 
sad  state  of  affairs  already  existing  in  the  country. 
It  reads  as  follows  : 

TRAVELING  PREACHERS. 

We  are  sad,  sad  indeed,  when  we  think  of  the  privations  and 


1860-61.  Missouri  Conference.  39 

sufferings  of  many  of  the  traveling  preachers  of  our  Church  in 
Missouri  during  these  troublous  times.  The  treatment  some  of 
them  have  received  has  been  severe,  not  to  say  cruel.  Bad  men 
have  sought  to  implicate  them  in  measures  with  which  they  have 
had  nothing  to  do,  and  have  them  annoyed  and  distressed  merely 
that  private  piques  and  personal  animosities  might  be  gratified.  A 
number  have  been  driven  literally  from  their  work,  either  by  the 
malice  of  their  enemies  or  by  want.  We  have  at  present  only  a 
word  to  say:  We  hope  the  preachers  will  remain  at  their  work  to 
the  fullest  possible  extent,  reproving,  exhorting,  comforting,  etc., 
with  all  long-suffering  and  kindness.  In  these  times  we  must  all 
suffer  more  or  less,  and  let  us  suffer  with  our  people,  and  be  sure 
that  we  suffer  for  righteousness'  sake,  and  not  as  evil-doers.  God 
rules,  and  they  that  serve  him  in  spirit  and  in  truth  shall  find  him 
a  very  present  help  in  time  of  trouble. 


CHAPTER  II. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

Signs  of  the  Times  Indicate  Something  Serious  in  the  Near  Fut- 
ure— Public  Mind  in  a  State  of  Excitement— The  Annual  Con- 
ferences of  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Recommend  a  Day  of  Fast- 
ing, Humiliation,  and  Prayer — Convocation  of  Ministers  and 
Members  of  Different  Christian  Denominations  at  St.  Charles, 
to  Promote  Peace — Session  of  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference — 
Death  of  Revs.  J.  A.  Gumming  and  J.  W.  Hawkins — Ministers 
of  M.  E.  Church,  South,  Special  Objects  of  Persecution — Their 
Being  Preachers  of  That  Church  the  Only  Charge  against  Them 
— Cannot  Omit  History  of  Our  Church  During  the  War — Per- 
secution of  Revs.  D.  J.  Marquis,  J.  B.  H.  Wooldridge,  J.  Ditzler, 
the  Great  Debater,  M.  Arrington,  and  J.  McCary. 

THIS  Conference,  as  well  as  the  Missouri  An- 
nual Conference,  met  in  the  fall  of  1860  pre- 
ceding the  commencement  of  the  Civil  War  in  the 
spring  of  1861.  Of  course  evidences  of  the  com- 
ing trouble  existed  everywhere  throughout  the 
country,  and  the  public  mind  was  in  a  state  of  fe- 
verish excitement.  The  signs  of  the  times  certain- 
ly indicated  something  serious  in  the  near  future ; 
therefore  the  Annual  Conferences  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  in  the  fall  of  1860,  recommended 
to  all  Christian  people  the  observance  of  a  "  day 
of  fasting,  humiliation,  and  prayer"  for  the  peace 
of  the  country  and  the  amicable  adjustment  of  exist- 
ing difficulties.  This  fact  of  itself  shows  unques- 
tionably that  the  ministers  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
(40) 


1860-61.  St.  tout's  Conference.  4\ 

South,  as  a  body  or  class,  were  in  favor  of  peace 
and  against  war;  that  they  were  unsectional,  un- 
political, and  non-combatant.  We  need  not  say 
that  they  sustained  this  character  during  the  entire 
war.  They  never  desecrated  their  pulpits  with  the 
discussion  of  political  questions. 

This  unpolitical  spirit  not  only  existed  among 
the  preachers  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  but 
also  among  ministers  of  other  Christian  denomina- 
tions as  well.  In  order  to  give  an  expression  of 
their  harmony  and  unanimity  of  feeling  on  this 
subject  they  assembled  with  the  ministers  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  in  the  city  of  St.  Charles,  Mo., 
May  21,  1861,  and  after  religious  service  they 
adopted  the  following: 

Whereas  in  the  providence  of  God  our  country  is  now  involved 
in  a  civil  war,  which  has  already  brought  upon  us  many  calamities, 
and  still  threatens  to  introduce  a  state  of  ill-will,  discord,  and  des- 
olation utterly  inconsistent  with  our  condition  as  a  Christian  land ; 
therefore, 

1.  Resolved,  That  we  together  on  this  day,  in  the  fear  of  God 
and  with  a  firm  reliance  on  his  divine  providence  as  a  Christian 
people,  members  of  the  respective  Churches  in  this  city,  observe 
such  means  as  will  at  least  tend  to  promote  good-will  among  our- 
selves during  the  continuance  of  the  war. 

2.  That  we  regard  all  war  as  a  sore  calamity,  contrary  to  the 
spirit  and  teaching  of  the  gospel ;  and  more  especially  a  civil  war, 
as  revolting  to  our  Christian  teaching,  unnatural,  abhorrent  to  all 
our  religious  instincts,  and  subversive  of  the  cause  of  Christ,  whose 
blessed  mission  was  to  establish  peace  on  earth. 

3.  That  as  ministers  of  the  Christian  Churches,  irrespective  of 
private  opinions,  we  hereby  pledge  ourselves  one  to  another,  min- 
isters and  people,  to  abstain  as  far  as  possible  from  all  bitter  and 
exciting  controversy  upon  the  questions  now  agitating  the  public 
mind ;  but  will,  each  within  the  sphere  of  our  influence,  endeavor 


42  Methodism  in  Missouri.  860-61. 

to  promote  a  spirit  of  brotherly  love,  and  by  calm  and  judicious 
counsel,  animated  by  the  spirit  of  Christ  our  peaceful  Master,  sup- 
press every  act  among  ourselves  which  may  have  the  tendency  to 
increase  the  present  difficulties. 

4.  That  we  call  upon  the  Christians  of  our  land  to  band  togeth- 
er to  stay,  if  possible,  the  further  shedding  of  fraternal  blood,  etc. 

5.  That  we  will  not  forget  our  best  refuge — praver,  and  there- 
fore humble  ourselves  before  God,  and  supplicate  our  heavenly 
Father  to  quell  the  madness  of  the  people,  and  put  away  from  us 
"  all  bitterness,  and  anger,  and  clamor,  and  evil  speaking,"  and  an- 
imate us  with  the  gentle  spirit  of  "peace  on  earth  and  good-will 
toward  men." 

We  have  given  the  above  because  we  believe 
that  it  expressed  the  general  sentiment  and  feeling 
of  all  the  Churches  in  Missouri,  and  we  are  satis- 
fied that  if  they  had  had  their  way,  and  could  have 
controlled  the  affairs  of  the  country,  there  \vould 
not  have  been  a  civil  war.  And  just  because 
they  preferred  peace  to  war  on  Christian  princi- 
ples they  were  denounced  and  proscribed  as  reb- 
els, secessionists,  and  enemies  of  the  Government, 
and  without  trial,  judge,  or  jury  sentence  of  con- 
demnation was  passed  upon  them;  and  we  shall 
see,  in  pursuing  the  history  of  the  M,  E.  Church, 
South,  in  Missouri  during  the  Civil  War,  how  they 
were  treated.  We  cannot  do  otherwise  than  fol- 
low our  Church  through  the  days  and  years  of  her 
fierce  and  fiery  persecution. 

The  session  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference 
was  held  at  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  October  10-20,  1860, 
Bishop  Kavanaugh  presiding.  Rev.  W.  M.  Protts- 
man  was  elected  Secretary. 

George  Schaffnit,  William  M.  Patterson',  John 


i86o-6i.  St.  Louis  Conference.  43 

Campbell,  Charles  C.  Woods,  William  M.  Will- 
iams, Stewart  C.  Stratton,  William  C.  Godbey, 
James  H.  Dulany,  John  H.  Wade,  David  I.  Har- 
ris, Norval  Davis,  and  Calvin  C.  Wright  were  ad- 
mitted on  trial.  Stephen  A.  Blakey,  G.  W.  Horn, 
T.  M.  L.  Bedsworth,  and  A.  C.  Morrow  remained 
on  trial.  Leonidas  H.  Boyle,  Theophilus  G.  Atchi- 
son,  J.  C.  B.  Renfro,  David  M.  Proctor,  Jacob  H. 
Cox,  Turner  W.  Davis,  and  Wiley  B.  Quinn  were 
admitted  into  full  connection,  and  were  elected 
and  ordained  deacons.  John  P.  Barneby,  M.  M. 
Pugh,  John  R.  Hall,  James  Copeland,  and  William 
F.  Lowe  were  re-admitted.  William  M.  Compton, 
John  A.  Murphy,  Stephen  A.  Ritchie,  Turner  W. 
Davis,  George  C.  Knowles,  Lucilius  F.  Aspley, 
and  William  D.  Stewart  were  deacons  of  one 
year.  The  local  preachers — John  D.  Kruse,  David 
J.  Harris,  Calvin  E.  Wright,  J.  H.  Bottom,  J.  H. 
Wade,  and  J.  D.  Davison — were  elected  and  or- 
dained deacons.  The  following  traveling  preach- 
ers were  elected  and  ordained  elders:  Joseph  W. 
Lewis,  Henry  W.  Webster,  John  P.  Phelps,  E.  H. 
White,  and  John  F.  Pearson. 

The  Committee  on  Memoirs  read  the  following 
two: 

James  A.  Gumming  was  born  in  Buncombe  County,  N.  C.v 
November  23,  1826.  Of  his  early  opportunities  and  boyhood  pe- 
culiarities we  know  but  little.  His  father  being  a  preacher,  it  may 
be  inferred  that  his  mind  was  early  impressed  with  religious  truth,, 
and  that  his  home  education  gave  to  his  character  the  elements  of 
that  eminent  personal  piety  which  matured  in  after  life.  He  em- 
braced religion  at  an  early  age,  and  became  a  member  of  the  Meth- 


44  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

odist  Church.  In  1849  (July  14)  he  was  licensed  to  preach,  and 
was  admitted  into  the  Indian  Mission  Conference  on  October  28 
of  the  same  year.  His  first  work  was  among  the  Indians  on  the 
Shawnee  and  Delaware  Mission.  He  speaks  frequently  in  his 
journal  of  the  embarrassments  and  difficulties  of  his  work,  arising 
from  his  want  of  experience  and  the  process  of  reaching  the  In- 
dians through  interpreters.  By  the  change  of  boundary  lines  he 
fell  into  the  St.  Louis  Conference,  in  which  he  ended  his  days. 
Having  given  himself  to  the  itinerant  work,  and  feeling  the  spirit 
of  a  divine  call  to  the  ministry,  he  ever  stood  before  the  Confer- 
ence, saying:  "Here  am  I;  send  me."  How  willingly  and  cheer- 
fully he  went  to  his  work,  and  how  patiently  and  heroically  he 
endured  hardness  and  suffered  affliction,  those  who  labored  with 
him  and  knew  his  spirit  can  testify.  His  labors  were  blessed  to 
the  Church  on  West  Point  Mission,  Osceola,  Columbus,  Xeosho, 
Deep  Water,  Potosi,  and  Ste.  Genevieve  Circuits,  and  none  re- 
joiced more  than  he  when  the  Lord  prospered  the  work  of  his 
hands.  Brother  Cumming  was  everywhere  acceptable  to  the 
Church,  and  labored  efficiently  for  the  advancement  of  all  her  in- 
terests. He  inherited  much  of  the  spirit  of  his  father,  the  Rev. 
David  B.  Cumming,  and  tried  to  do  all  the  work  of  a  Methodist 
preacher.  His  personal  piety  was  deep,  earnest,  and  consistent. 
Indeed,  to  lead  a  holy  life  himself,  and  teach  others  so  to  do,  was 
the  controlling  principle  of  his  character.  He  was  prudent  and 
discreet  in  all  his  intercourse  with  the  world,  and  sought  studi- 
ously to  give  none  occasion  to  offend,  feeling  that  "  while  all  things 
were  lawful  to  him,"  yet  "all  things  were  not  expedient."  If  one 
term  could  distinguish  his  character  and  describe  it  to  the  world, 
that  term  is  "  love."  He  approximated  as  nearly  the  fulfill- 
ment of  the  law  and  prophets  as  any  man  perhaps  of  the  St. 
Louis  Conference.  As  a  preacher  he  was  successful.  Turning 
not  aside  for  the  accommodation  of  any  false  or  corrupt  tastes, 
and  catering  not  to  the  vagaries  of  popular  fancy,  he  expounded 
the  word  of  God  faithfully  and  pointedly,  making  it  "quick  and 
powerful"  upon  the  sinner's  heart  and  hopefully  inspiring  the 
Christian's  faith.  He  "studied  to  show  himself  approved  unto 
God,  a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed."  He  was  just 
making  character  as  a  preacher,  under  discouragements  and  afflic- 
tions, when  the  hand  of  death  marked  him  for  its  victim ;  and  ere 
the  strength  of  maturity  had  crowned  the  preacher  an  inscrutable 


1860-61.  Si.  Louis  Conference.  45 

Providence  removed  the  saint.  He  left  a  journal  of  his  ministeri- 
al career,  which  confines  its  records  mostly  to  facts  that  may  be 
gathered  from  the  published  Minutes  of  the  Conference,  except 
the  spirit  of  humility  and  resignation  to  the  will  of  God  under  se- 
vere and  protracted  afflictions. 

John  Wesley  Hawkins  was  born  in  Gibson  County,  Ind., 
December  3,  1826.  He  emigrated  with  his  father  to  Gasconade 
County,  Mo.,  in  the  autumn  of  1841.  In  1844,  under  the  ministry 
of  J.  R.  Burk,  he  professed  faith  in  Christ  and  joined  the  Method- 
ist Church.  He  was  licensed  to  preach  in  July,  1848,  and  in  the  au- 
tumn of  the  same  year  was  admitted  on  trial  in  the  St.  Louis  Annu- 
al Conference.  Having  voluntarily  entered  the  itinerant  ministry, 
he  sought  no  favors  at  the  hands  of  the  Conference,  but  was  ever 
ready  to  go  whither  the  appointing  power  might  direct.  The  Church 
was  blessed  with  his  godly  labors  on  Thomasville  Mission,  Steelville 
Mission,  Charleston  Circuit,  Benton  Circuit,  Ste.  Genevieve  Cir- 
cuit, Wolf  Island  Circuit,  Cape  Girardeau  Circuit,  Christy  Chap- 
el Station,  St.  Louis,  and  Springfield  Station — at  the  latter  place 
two  vears.  He  was  always  well  received  and  highly  appreciated 
as  a  preacher  and  as  a  Christian  gentleman.  On  the  9th  of  May, 
1858,  while  in  his  pulpit  in  Springfield,  preaching  "Jesus  Christ 
and  him  crucified,"  in  the  holy  effort  of  warning  sinners  to  "  flee 
from  the  wrath  to  come,"  he  felt  his  nervous  system  give  way  and 
sat  down,  assured  that  his  work  was  done.  He  traveled  South, 
and  wasted  away  slowly  with  consumption  until  December  3, 
1858,  when  he  calmly  fell  asleep  in  Jesus.  He  died  at  the  resi- 
dence of  Dr.  J.  W.  Sullivan,  in  Monroe  County,  Ark.  He  was  a 
true  son  of  John  Wesley,  not  only  inheriting  his  name,  but  much 
of  the  spirit  of  ardor  and  consecration  to  the  work  of  the  ministry 
which  characterized  that  great  man.  He  was  a  sound,  practical, 
gospel  preacher,  depending  not  upon  the  showy  tinsel  of  ornament 
to  attract,  but  the  power  of  gospel  truth  to  enlighten,  convict,  and 
convert  the  sinner's  heart.  In  his  hands  the  gospel  was  l<  the 
power  of  God  unto  salvation,"  and  the  day  of  eternity  will  disclose 
the  success  of  his  ministry  in  every  field  of  labor  in  the  conversion 
and  salvation  of  souls,  that  will  be  his  crown  of  rejoicing  forever. 
He  combined  the  elements  of  a  humble,  intelligent,  courteous, 
Christian  gentleman  in  all  the  private  walks  and  relations  of  life; 
with  the  dignity,  urbanity,  and  catholicity  of  an  evangelical  Chris- 
tian minister. 


46  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

With  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War,  in  the 
spring  of  1861,  commenced  the  persecution  of  the 
ministers  of  the  gospel.  It  seems  to  have  been 
the  fixed  purpose  of  those  in  authority,  and  who 
had  the  management  of  the  war,  to  rid  Missouri  of 
all  the  preachers  who  did  not  take  sides  with  them 
in  that  sanguinary  and  destructive  conflict.  You 
would  infer  from  the  way  they  acted  that  their  idea 
was  to  exterminate  the  last  one  of  them.  With  a 
well-concerted  plan  their  special  aim  seemed  to  be 
against  the  preachers  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South. 
With  no  mercy,  no  relenting,  but  with  cruel  hate, 
they  persecuted  them  in  every  way  their  inventive 
genius  could  devise.  This  is  very  strong  language, 
but  the  facts  are  much  stronger  than  the  language. 
Indeed,  language  is  wholly  inadequate  to  do  the 
subject  justice.  These  persecuted  preachers,  too, 
were  all  the  time  law-abiding  and  peaceable  citi- 
zens, and  the  only  charge  they  brought  against 
them  was  that  they  were  ministers  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  and  would  Breach  the  gospel  with- 
out their  -permission.  As  already  stated,  their 
names  certainly  merit  a  prominent  place  in  the  his- 
tory of  "Methodism  in  Missouri/'  Some  persons 
may  be  ready  to  ask:  "Why  don't  you  pass  over 
the  troubles  of  the  war,  and  leave  them  out?  "  If 
we  were  to  do  so,  our  Church  would  have  but  little 
history  for  that  period  of  time,  because  the  perse- 
cution of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  constitutes  the 
major  part  of  her  history  during  the  Civil  War. 

Revs.  D.  J.  Marquis  and  J.  B.  H.  Wooldridge,  of 


1860-61.  »SV'  Louis  Conference.  47 

the  St.  Louis  Conference,  had  the  honor  of  being 
among  the  first  to  suffer  persecution  for  Christ's 
sake,  an  account  of  which  is  given  by  another  as 
follows : 

In  1861,  soon  after  the  occupation  of  Jefferson  City  by  the  Fed- 
eral forces,  these  two  men  were  arrested  by  Col.  Boernstein's  or- 
der, or  by  his  officers,  at  Tipton,  in  Moniteau  County ;  taken  to 
Jefferson  City,  abused  by  the  officers,  kept  in  the  dungeon  under 
the  State  Capitol  over  twenty-four  hours  without  a  mouthful  of 
food,  taken  out,  abused,  put  on  board  a  steamer,  and  sent  up  to 
Boonville.  They  were  put  into  the  hands  of  Col.  Stevenson, 
who  had  them  closely  guarded  in  the  fair-grounds  for  ten  days, 
and  then  sent  to  St.  Louis.  Here  they  were  kept  for  two  days  in 
the  guard-house  in  the  old  arsenal,  and  then  released  uncondition- 
ally, by  order  of  Maj.-Gen.  Fremont. 

The  only  charge  against  Marquis  was  that  he  was  a  minister  of 
the  Southern  Methodist  Church,  and  kept  company  with  Wool- 
dridge.  They  charged  Wooldridge  with  keeping  company  with 
Southern  Methodist  ministers  who  were  known  to  be  disloyal. 
The  old  adage  that  "evil  communications  corrupt  good  manners" 
is  scarcely  a  criminal  law,  and  the  associations  of  ministers  of  the 
gospel  in  their  legitimate  work  can  hardly  be  considered  a  crimi- 
nal offense,  involving  the  safety  of  the  Federal  government.  And 
yet  these  humble  ministers  were  subjected  to  arrest,  insult,  impris- 
onment, hunger,  abuse,  and  various  tortures  of  body*  and  mind, 
for  no  other  reason  than  their  ecclesiastical  connection  and  minis- 
terial association  in  promoting  the  kingdom  of  Christ  on  earth. 

While  Mr.  Marquis  was  attending  the  Warrensburg-Arrow 
Rock-Waverly  Conference,  in  the  fall  of  1861,  his  home  was  taken 
and  used  for  a  hospital  and  literally  stripped  of  every  thing  of  any 
value — even  the  clothing  of  himself  and  family — leaving  not  a  sin- 
gle change  of  raiment  for  any  of  them.  This  act  of  plunder 
and  robbery  was  done  by  Gen.  Fremont's  men,  upon  the  charge 
that  Marquis  was  a  Southern  Methodist  minister,  and  had  no 
rights. 

Believing  that  his  life  was  not  safe  in  Moniteau,  he  removed  to 
Jefferson  County,'  where  he  was  still  subject  to  persecution  during 
the  war,  and  where  he  had  the  honor  of  an  indictment  from  the 


48  Methodism  in  Missouri.  iS6o-6i. 

grand  jury,  after  the  war  closed,  for  preaching  the  gospel  without 
taking  the  oath  prescribed  by  the  new  Constitution  of  the  State, 
which  was  pronounced  illegal  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Unit- 
ed States.* 

In  1860  and  1861  the  Rev.  J.  Ditzler,  the  great 
debater,  who  was  stationed  at  Jefferson  City,  found 
himself  very  unexpectedly  in  the  hands  of  the  mil- 
itary authorities,  as  the  reader  may  see  in  the  fol- 
lowing statement: 

After  Gov.  Jackson  and  Gen.  Price  had  evacuated  the  State 
capital,  and  the  United  States  forces  under  Gen.  Lyon  had  taken 
possession,  Mr.  Ditzler  remained  as  a  non-combatant,  supposing 
that  he  would  not  be  molested.  In  this  he  was  mistaken.  He 
was  not  allowed  to  remain  long  in  his  quiet  study  at  the  Fergu- 
son House,  or  to  attend  to  his  pastoral  duties.  An  "orderly," 
with  a  guard  of  seven  men,  called  on  him  at  the  Ferguson 
House,  arrested  and  marched  him  through  the  city,  and  put  him 
with  others  in  an  old  meat-house.  He  was  taunted  and  sneered 
at  by  his  guard — the  Dutch — through  the  cracks  of  the  old  log 
house.  Mr.  Ditzler  talked  back  to  them  in  German,  Italian,  Span- 
ish, French,  Greek,  and  Hebrew,  quoting  freely  from  Schiller, 
Goethe,  and  other  German  authors  of  note,  for  his  own  relief 
and  their  amusement,  until  he  was  reported  to  Col.  Boernstein, 
post  commander,  and  by  him  unconditionally  released,  solely 
upon  literary  grounds.  No  charges  were  preferred  against  him, 
nor  could  he  ever  find  out  why  he  was  imprisoned.  His  father 
fought  at  Tippecanoe  in  1812,  and  his  grandfather  at  Valley  Forge 
under  Washington,  and  this  treatment  was  not  borne  without  some 
little  indignation. 

Brig.-Gen.  Brown  succeeded  Col.  Boernstein,  and  Mr.  Ditz- 
ler was  apprised  of  the  purpose  to  re-arrest  him.  He  was  ad- 
vised by  his  friends  to  flee,  and  accordingly  took  the  train  late 
Saturday  night  for  SL  Louis;  and  at  noon  the  next  day  (Sabbath) 
a  posse  of  ten  armed  soldiers  entered  his  church  to  arrest  him,  but 
he  was  gone.  They  followed  him  to  St.  Louis,  only  to  find  that 
he  had  taken  a  train  on  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  railroad.* 

*Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


1860-61.  St.  tout's  Conference.  49 

REV.  MARCUS  ARRINGTON 

was  for  many  years  a  faithful  and  useful  member 
of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference,  M.  E.  Church, 
South.  He  endured  hardness  as  a  good  soldier  of 
Jesus  Christ.  In  the  Lord's  service  be  bore  the 
heat  and  burden  of  the  day  uncomplainingly  and 
without  a  murmur.  When  he  put  his  hands  to  the 
plow  in  the  cultivation-  of  Immanuel's  ground  he 
did  not  look  back.  Through  heat  and  cold,  wet 
and  dry,  he  pressed  forward  in  the  prosecution  of 
his  ministerial  duties,  regardless  of  trials  and  diffi- 
culties. Such  being  his  life,  of  course  he  gained 
the  confidence,  the  esteem,  and  love  of  all  persons, 
saints  and  sinners. 

Read  his  own  account  of  his  sufferings : 

When  the  troubles  commenced,  in  the  spring  of  1861,  I  was 
traveling  the  Springfield  Circuit,  St.  Louis  Conference.  I  was 
very  particular  not  to  say  any  thing,  either  publicly  or  privately, 
that  would  indicate  that  I  was  a  partisan  in  the  strife.  I  tried  to 
attend  to  my  legitimate  work  as  a  traveling  preacher. 

But  after  the  war  commenced,  because  I  did  not  advocate  the 
policy  of  the  party  in  power,  I  was  reported  as  a  secessionist ;  and 
in  the  midst  of  the  public  excitement  it  was  vain  to  attempt  to 
counteract  the  report. 

At  the  earnest  solicitations  of  divers  persons  I  took  the  oath  of 
loyalty  to  the  government.  This,  it  was  thought,  would  be  suffi- 
cient. But  we  were  mistaken.  Soon  after  this  my  life  was  threat- 
ened by  those  who  were  in  the  employ  of  the  Federal  government, 
but  they  were,  as  I  verily  believe,  providentially  prevented  from 
executing  their  threat. 

After  the  battle  of  Oak  Hills,  or  Wilson's  Creek,  July  10,  1861, 

it  became  my  duty  to  do  all  I  could  for  the  relief  of  the  sick  and 

wounded,  and  because  I  did  this  I  was  assured  that  I  had  violated 

my  oath  of  allegiance.     I  was  advised  by  Union  men  (so  called) 

4 


50  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1860-61. 

that  it  would  be  unsafe  for  me  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  Federal 
soldiers.  Believing  this  to  be  true,  when  Gen.  Fremont  came 
to  Springfield  I  went  to  Arkansas,  as  I  think  almost  any  man 
would  have  done  under  the  circumstances. 

While  in  Arkansas  I  met  Brother  W.  S.  Caples,  who  was  act- 
ing chaplain  to  General  Price.  He  requested  me  to  take  a  chap- 
laincy in  the  army,  informing  me  at  the  time  that  by  an  agreement 
between  Gens.  Fremont  and  Price  all  men  who  had  taken  the  oath 
of  loyalty  as  I  did  were  released  from  its  obligations. 

In  December,  1861,  I  was  appointed  by  Gen.  McBride  chap- 
lain of  the  Seventh  Brigade,  Missouri  State  Guard.  In  this  ca- 
pacity I  remained  with  the  army  until  the  battle  of  Pea  Ridge, 
March  7  and  8,  1862.  On  the  second  day  of  the  battle,  while  in 
the  discharge  of  my  duty  as  chaplain,  I  was  taken  prisoner.  Sev- 
eral chaplains,  taken  at  the  same  time,  were  released  on  the  field ; 
but  I  was  retained.  I  was  made  to  walk  to  Springfield,  a  distance 
of  eighty  miles.  We  remained  in  Springfield  one  day  and  two 
nights ;  and  while  many  prisoners  who  had  previously  taken  the 
oath,  as  I  had,  were  paroled  to  visit  their  families,  I  was  denied  the 
privilege. 

We  were  then  started  off  to  Rolla,  and  although  I  had  been  as- 
sured that  I  would  be  furnished  transportation  it  was  a  sad  mis- 
take, and  I  had  to  walk  until  I  literally  gave  out.  I  cannot  de- 
scribe what  I  suffered  on  that  trip.  When  we  reached  Rolla  I  was 
publicly  insulted  by  the  commander  of  the  post. 

From  Rolla  I  was  sent  to  St.  Louis  on  the  cars,  lodged  one 
night  in  the  old  McDowell  College,  and  the  next  day  sent  to  Al- 
ton, 111.  Whilst  I  was  in  Alton  prison  a  correspondent  of  the  Re- 
publican, writing  over  the  name  of  "  Leon,"  represented  me  as  a 
"thief  and  perjured  villain."  I  was  kept  in  Alton  prison  until 
August  2,  1862,  when  I  was  released  by  a  general  order  for  the  re- 
lease of  all  chaplains. 

I  then  went  to  St.  Louis,  and  thence  South,  by  way  of  Mem- 
phis, Tenn.,  in  exile.  I  would  have  returned  to  Missouri  after  the 
war  closed  but  for  the  restrictions  put  upon  ministers  of  the  gospel 
by  the  new  Constitution. 

Eternity  alone  will  reveal  what  I  have  suffered  in  exile.  The 
St.  Louis  Conference  is  properly  my  home,  and  her  preachers 
have  a  warm  place  in  my  affections.  They  are  very  near  my 
heart.  May  they  ever  be  successful! 


i86o-6i.  St.  Louis  Conference.  51 

REV.  JOSIAH  McCARY 

was  also  a  member  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference, 
M.  E.  Church,  South.  With  many  others  he  en- 
tertained the  idea  (which  seems  to  have  been  a  cor- 
rect idea)  that  there  was  a  well-understood  arrange- 
ment to  oust  every  Southern  Methodist  preacher  in 
the  State,  particularly  the  most  prominent  and  in- 
fluential. He  speaks  for  himself: 

In  my  own  case,  some  time  in  May,  1861,  just  before  I  reached 
one  of  my  places  of  preaching,  I  was  met  by  a  friend  who  inquired 
if  I  was  going  to  fill  my  appointment.  I  answered :  "  Yes."  Said 
he:  "I  am  informed  that  you  will  not."  My  answer  was:  "Your 
informant  don't  know."  I  went  to  the  place,  and  delivered  my  mes- 
sage to  a  large  and  attentive  congregation,  which,  when  dismissed, 
retired  peacefully  from  the  house.  Several  of  the  people  informed 
me  that  many  threats  had  been  made  against  me,  and  thought, 
from  the  tone  of  some,  that  an  effort  would  have  been  made  that 
day  to  take  me  out  of  the  house,  or  to  prevent  my  going  into  iU 
"What  is  the  accusation  against  me?"  I  inquired.  "Southern 
Methodist  preacher  and  a  Southern  man  "  was  the  answer.  "  If 
this  is  my  crime,  I  am  ready  to  answer.  If  a  man  is  to  be  pun- 
ished for  being  born  in  any  particular  part  of  these  United  States, 
or  to  be  condemned  for  belonging  to  any  religious  body  whose  sole 
aim  is  to  benefit  mankind,  who,  then,  is  safe  when  law  and  liberty 
are  at  an  end?  If  he  goes  North,  they  kill  him  because  he  did 
not  go  North  to  be  born ;  if  he  stays  at  home,  or  goes  to  the  house 
of  God  to  worship,  they  will  kill  him,  and  then  rob  his  family." 

At  my  next  appointment  every  thing  was  ready,  I  was  informed, 
for  an  assault  upon  me.  Some  young  men  requested  me  to  per- 
mit them  to  arm  themselves  for  my  defense.  This  I  refused.  I 
went  and  preached  the  gospel  of  peace  and  salvation  to  the  people, 
but  no  man  rose  up  against  me.  The  mob  no  doubt  thought  they 
were  too  weak  to  be  successful,  as  the  congregation  was  large. 

In  a  short  time  after  a  company  of  about  forty  came  to  my 
house  to  hang  me,  so  a  messenger  who  informed  me  of  their  com- 
ing said.  I  plainly  saw  that  there  was  but  one  hope  or  chance 
left  me :  that  was  to  get  out  of  their  reach,  which  I  did.  I  was 


52  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1 860-61. 

driven  away  from  my  own  house.  In  a  short  time  my  house  was 
robbed  of  every  thing  valuable,  breaking  open  trunks  with  axes, 
and  carrying  off  their  contents  and  blankets.  In  the  dead  of  win- 
ter, in  December,  1861,  an  armed  band  came  in  the  night  and 
burned  my  house  to  ashes.  Then  came  the  militia  and  tore  down 
the  corn-house  and  corn-pens  on  the  premises,  and  carried  off 
about  two  thousand  bushels  of  corn,  for  which  I  have  never  re- 
ceived one  cent.  Mine  was  not  the  only  case.  The  wrath  and 
fury  of  the  enemies  of  our  preachers  fell  heavily  on  us  all;  in 
which  many  lost  not  only  their  property,  but  their  lives,  upon 
whose  moral  character  no  stain  can  be  found.  I  have  often  re- 
membered the  word  of  the  Lord  to  Cain :  "  The  voice  of  thy  broth- 
er's blood  crieth  to  me  from  the  ground." 

After  the  close  of  the  war  I  attended  the  Annual  Conference 
of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  held  at  St.  Louis,  and  was  sent  to 
Georgetown  Circuit.  I  came  at  once,  and  got  off  the  Pacific  rail- 
road at  Dresden,  Mo.,  where  I  was  informed  that  very  night  by 
one  who  was  dubbed  "  Governor  of  Pettis  County  "  that  if  I  at- 
tempted to  preach  on  the  circuit  I  would  get  into  difficulties  that 
I  would  not  get  out  of  very  soon.  I  understood  that  my  life  would 
be  taken.  I  went  to  my  farm  (or  where  my  farm  ought  to  have 
been),  on  Warrensburg  Circuit,  and  under  the  test  oath,  as  it  was 
called,  I  was  arrested  for  preaching  the  gospel. 

Who  would,  who  could  have  believed,  until  it  actually  did  take 
place,  that  such  instruments  of  torture  should  ever  be  invented  in 
the  State  of  Missouri  by  authority  of  law,  so  called,  as  have  been 
put  in  operation  to  punish  men  for  opinion's  sake?  One  would 
have  thought  that  not  one  man  could  be  found  who  would  be 
willing  for  his  name  to  go  down  to  posterity  in  the  history  of  the 
times  stained  with  so  foul  a  blot  as  must  forever  re^t  upon  the 
names  of  the  men  who  took  part  in  getting  up  and  carrying  for- 
ward the  wicked  schemes  contemplated  by  the  test  oath.  I  have 
often  thought,  since  many  in  our  land  have  engaged  so  earnestly 
in  plotting  destruction  against  their  countrymen,  of  the  old  Greek 
poet,  who  says : 

The  eagle  saw  her  breast  was  wounded  sore; 
She  stood  and  weeped  much,  but  grieved  no  more; 
But  when  she  saw  the  dart  was  feathered,  said: 
"Woe's  me,  for  my  own  kind  hath  me  destroyed." 

Yes,  our  own  countrymen!     There  is  one  comfort  to  me  after 


1860-61.  St.  Louis  Conference.  53 

all.  I  would  rather  lose  all  I  have  lost  and  suffer  all  I  have  suf- 
fered than  to  be  the  man  of  such  wicked  contrivance  to  bring  suf- 
fering on  others.  Little  and  unknown  let  me  live,  and  let  me  die 
rather  than  go  down  to  the  grave  with  the  consciousness  of  hav- 
ing lived  to  inflict  injury  upon  others  who  never  injured  me. 

The  intelligent  reader  cannot  fail  to  perceive 
that  the  trials  and  sufferings  inflicted  upon  the 
Southern  Methodist  preachers  were  nothing  else 
than  sheer  malicious  persecution  for  righteous- 
ness' sake.  They  were  not  punished  for  disobe- 
dience to  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  civil 
government ;  they  were  not  punished  for  out- 
rageous crimes — such  as  theft,  robbery,  arson, 
murder;  they  were  not  punished  for  taking  by 
violence  that  to  which  they  had  no  claim  what- 
ever, nor  for  burning  and  destroying  the  property 
of  others  amounting  to  multiplied  thousands  of  dol- 
lars. They  were  persecuted  because  they  were 
righteous  and  would  maintain  their  Christian  integ- 
rity and  fidelity  to  God.  Noble  set  of  heroes ! 
they  are  not  dead,  but  will  live  when  sun,  moon, 
and  stars  are  no  more. 


CHAPTER  III. 
MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Seat  of  the  Conference  Changed  from  Hannibal  to  Glasgow — 
Orderly  Session  of  Good-looking,  Intelligent,  and  Happy  Men 
— The  Civil  War  Rages — Sad  Parting  in  View  of  Threatening 
Danger — Great  Consternation  Prevails  throughout  the  State 
— Persecution  of  Rev.  Andrew  Monroe — His  High  and  Influ- 
ential Character — Mrs.  Monroe — Their  House  Plundered  and 
They  Robbed  of  All  They  Had— Rev.  John  McGlothin  Cru- 
elly Treated — Seizure  of  Our  Church  in  Louisiana  by  the  M. 
E.  Church— Severe  Trials  of  Rev.  R.  N.  T.  Holliday,  as 
Related  by  Dr.  Oregon  Richmond,  a  Federal  Officer. 

THE  session  of  the  Missouri  Annual  Confer- 
ence, M.  E.  Church,  South,  was  to  have  been 
held  at  Hannibal,  Mo.,  but  in  consequence  of  the 
great  political  excitement  and  war  troubles  in  that 
section  of  the  country,  and  on  account  of  strong 
prejudices  caused  by  designing  persons  making 
false  representations,  it  was  thought  best  to  change 
the  place  of  meeting.  Therefore  it  was  held  at 
Glasgow,  Mo.,  September  11-16,  1861.  In  the 
absence  of  a  bishop  Rev.  William  G.  Caples  pre- 
sided. Rev.  E.  K.  Miller  was  elected  Secretary. 
Marshall  Mcllhany,  John  W.  Atkisson,  James  S. 
Smith,  James  B.  Short,  George  C.  Brown,  and 
Samuel  J.  Huffaker  were  admitted  on  trial.  O.  R. 
Bouton,  Jacob  McEwin,  J.  T.  Tutt,  Samuel  Alexan- 
der, Walter  G.  Fowler,  and  E.  McKendree  Bounds 
remained  on  trial.  E.  H.  Hudson,  Henry  B.  Wat- 
(54)' 


1861-62.  Missouri  Conference.  55 

son,  H.  G.  McEwin,  and  Charles  W.  Collet  were 
admitted  into  full  connection.  H.  A.  Bourland, 
John  F.  Shores,  Wesley  W.  McMurry,  Roderick 
D.  Baldwin,  John  Stone,  John  R.  Taylor,  George 
W.  Penn,  and  George  H.  Newton  were  deacons  of 
one  year.  No  bishop  being  present,  there  were 
no  ordinations.  William  Penn,  O.  R.  Bouton, 
Richard  Minshall,  Horace  Brown,  Jesse  Faubion, 
Joseph  H.  Pritchett,  L.  Baldwin,  R.  A.  Austin, 
and  Samuel  J.  Catlin  were  supernumerary.  L.  R. 
Downing,  R.  P.  Holt,  D.  C.  Blackwell,  R.  C. 
Hatton,  J.  F.  Young,  and  William  Ketron  were 
superannuated. 

The  session  of  the  Conference  differed  in 
nothing  from  that  over  which  a  bishop  presides. 
In  the  transaction  of  business  perfect  order  pre- 
vailed, and  the  deliberations  and  discussions  were 
conducted  in  a  dignified  and  respectful  manner. 
This  writer  has  frequently  thought  that  it  would  be 
difficult  to  find  such  another  body  of  good-looking 
and  dignified  men.  He  has  heard  the  same  sen- 
timent expressed  by  others.  The  preachers  are 
so  joyous  and  happy  in  their  annual  convocations, 
how  could  it  be  otherwise?  They  are  brethren — 
one  in  Christ  Jesus — baptized  into  one  and  the 
same  spirit,  preach  one  and  the  same  gospel,  made 
partakers  of  the  same  divine  nature.  They  love, 
too,  to  tell  each  other  of  the  labors  and  toils,  the 
trials  and  temptations,  the  conflicts  and  battles,  the 
defeats  and  victories  of  the  past  year. 

But  now  comes  the  sad  scene  of  parting.     They 


56  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

have  received  their  appointments,  and  are  off  in  a 
hurry  to  their  respective  fields  of  labor,  asking 
themselves  many  questions  about  their  appoint- 
ment. One  thought,  however,  saddens  their  hearts 
very  much.  They  may  never  meet  again,  as  they 
are  going  into  the  scenes  of  sore  and  fierce  perse- 
cution. 

Let  not  the  reader  forget  that  we  are  writing  in 
the  Conference  year  1861-62 ;  that  the  war  is 
fiercely  raging ;  that  we  are  amid  the  scenes  of  the 
battle-field;  that  we  can  see  the  ascending  columns 
of  smoke;  can  hear  the  thunder  of  the  cannon,  the 
shrieks  of  the  wounded,  the  groans  of  the  dying. 
While  the  great  armies  are  in  battle  array  against 
each  other,  there  are  those  who  are  parading 
through  the  country,  fighting,  killing,  and  robbing 
the  unarmed,  the  innocent,  and  the  helpless,  pro- 
ducing panic  and  consternation  all  over  the  land. 

REV.  ANDREW  MONROE. 

We  now  approach  the  history  of  the  troubles 
and  sufferings  of  him  who  has  been  very  appropri- 
ately styled  "  the  venerable  patriarch  of  Methodism 
in  Missouri,"  the  Rev.  Andrew  Monroe.  No  at- 
tempt to  give  a  true  description  of  this  noble  man 
of  God  can  be  a  success;  language  falters,  words 
are  inadequate.  There  are  thoughts  and  truths 
language  cannot  express,  words  cannot  tell.  An 
approximation  is  all  that  language  can  do.  He 
was  the  embodiment  of  Methodism,  about  as  good 
as  the  Discipline;  was  a  strong  and  able  advocate 


1861-62.  Missouri  Conference.  57 

•of  the  cardinal  doctrines  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South — which  are  the  fundamental  doctrines  of  the 
Bible.  He  was  at  home  on  the  gospel  truths  es- 
sential to  salvation — true  repentance,  saving  faith, 
thorough  conversion,  or  spiritual  regeneration 
through  the  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  a  conse- 
crated, righteous  life,  the  resurrection,  a  future 
judgment,  the  eternal  reward  of  the  righteous,  and 
the  everlasting  punishment  of  the  wicked.  We 
are  favored  with  an  interesting  notice  of  his  trials 
during  the  war,  which  we  give  below: 

In  the  winter  of  1862  the  Rev.  A.  Monroe  was  traveling  the 
Fayette  Circuit,  Missouri  Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South,  and 
living  in  the  town  of  Fayette,  Howard  County.  Fayette,  like  all 
other  towns  of  importance  in  the  State,  was  a  military  post,  with 
one  Maj.  Hubbard  in  command. 

"  One  day  of  that  winter  Mr.  Monroe  and  his  family  were  sur- 
prised by  the  appearance  of  a  Federal  officer  and  a  squad  of  men 
entering  his  humble  home,  placing  him  and  his  wife  under  arrest, 
and  marching  them,  off  to  head-quarters,  for  what  offense  they 
never  knew. 

The  soldiers  arrested  many  other  gentlemen  and  ladies  at  the 
same  time,  and  they  had  plenty  of  company  when  they  reached 
head-quarters,  among  whom  were  Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis,  President 
of  Howard  Female  College,  and  Rev.  Dr.  W.  H.  Anderson,  Presi- 
dent of  Central  College. 

When  Maj.  Hubbard  came  in,  and  saw  the  number  of  ladies 
present  under  arrest,  he  affected  surprise,  and  said  that  he  had  not 
ordered  their  arrest  ;  that  his  subalterns  had  transcended  his  or- 
ders, and  at  once  informed  the  ladies  that  they  were  released, 
remarking  at  the  same  time  that  when  he  wished  to  see  them  he 
would  not  send  for  them,  but  do  himself  the  pleasure  of  calling  at 
their  homes.  To  which  Mrs.  Monroe  promptly  replied  that  they 
were  obliged  to  him  for  releasing  them  so  early,  but  as  for  seeing 
him,  she  had  no  desire  whatever  to  see  him  at  her  house  or  any- 
where else. 


58  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

Many  a  true  and  modest  woman  had  occasion  during  those 
troublous  times  to  call  upon  her  ready  .wit  to  reply  to  the  various 
impertinent  inquiries  and  demands  of  a  ruffian  soldiery ;  and  while 
Mrs.  Monroe  was  surprised  at  her  own  courage,  her  indignation 
was  somewhat  appeased  when  she  observed  the  cutting  effect  of 
her  retort.  Not  many  days  afterward  she  had  occasion  again  for 
her  ready  wit  and  Christian  fortitude  and  forbearance.  Very 
early  in  the  morning  five  soldiers  called  and  demanded  breakfast. 
Mr.  Monroe  was  at  home,  but  he  soon  retreated  from  the  front 
door  and  called  upon  his  wife  to  meet  the  issue.  She  had  no 
help,  and  the  idea  of  cooking  for  so  many,  and  those,  too,  whom 
she  believed  to  be  her  enemies,  and  who  would  not  hesitate  to  do 
her  any  injury,  was  very  repulsive.  But  to  get  rid  of  them  was 
a  difficult  question,  as  many  ladies  know.  By  the  time  she  had 
reached  the  front  door  and  heard  their  request,  her  answer  was 
ready.  She  replied:  "  My  Bible  teaches  me,  '  If  thine  enemy  hun- 
ger, feed  him  ;  if  he  thirst,  give  him  drink.'  Upon  these  terms 
and  no  other  you  can  get  breakfast."  To  her  surprise  one  of  them 
said :  "  Madam,  we  will  accept  breakfast  upon  those  terms,  for  I 
profess  to  be  somewhat  acquainted  with  the  Bible."  She  thought 
they  would  turn  and  go  away  in  a  rage,  but,  on  the  contrary,  she 
had  to  turn  and  get  breakfast,  with  the  best  grace  she  could. 

It  turned  out  that  the  spokesman  was  a  local  preacher  in  the 
Northern  Methodist  Church,  and  at  the  table  he  remarked  to 
Mrs.  Monroe  that  his  father  was  as  great  a  rebel  as  she  was ;  to 
which  she  replied  that  it  was  a  thousand  pities  that  he  had  so 
far  departed  from  the  ways  of  his  father  as  to  be  a  degenerate  son 
of  an  honored  sire.  Whereupon  he  said:  "As  a  loyal  man,  I 
would  hate  awfully  to  have  to  live  with  such  a  rebel.  Gen. 
Price  could  well  afford  to  issue  a  commission  to  you,  madam." 

Not  many  days  after  this  Mr.  Monroe  was  just  ready  to  mount 
his  horse  one  morning  for  a  tour  of  appointments  in  the  coun- 
try, when  a  soldier  appeared  with  orders  to  arrest  him  and  take 
him  to  the  head-quarters  of  Capt.  Hale,  then  commanding  the  post. 
The  venerable  man  of  God  was  then  marched  up  to  head-quarters 
at  the  point  of  the  bayonet  and  required  to  take  the  military  oath 
and  give  bond,  with  good  security,  for  his  future  loyalty  to  the 
government,  and  for  the  loyalty  and  good  order  of  his  family,  the 
captain  remarking:  "  The  Se^esh  talk  of  the  women  of  his  family 
should  be  stopped.'  Mr.  Monroe  replied  that  he  could  take  the 


1861-62.  Missouri  Conference.  59 

oath  if  he  would  let  him  go  about  his  Master's  work,  but  as  for 
the  bond,  he  must  excuse  him,  as  he  did  not  wish  to  involve  his 
friends,  and  he  had  but  little  property.  If  it  was  this  little  prop- 
erty he  was  after,  he  might  as  well  go  and  take  charge  of  that  at 
once,  and  let  him  go  about  his  business.  The  Captain  saw  the 
point,  and  told  him  to  take  the  oath  then,  and  "go  preach  the  gos-" 
pel  to  every  creature." 

In  1864  Mr.  Monroe  was  living  on  a  farm  about  six  miles 
east  of  Glasgow,  in  Howard  County,  when  Gen.  Price  made  his 
famous  raid  into  Central  Missouri,  and  took  Glasgow  among 
other  places.  The  day  before  the  battle  of  Glasgow  Mr.  Monroe 
was  out  in  a  field  on  his  little  farm,  and  his  family  all  away  from 
home  except  a  servant,  when  a  company  of  Kansas  soldiers  pass- 
ing along  the  road  halted,  entered  the  house,  and  robbed  it  of 
every  thing  of  value  they  could  find.  The  house  was  literally 
pillaged.  Mr.  Monroe's  watch,  a  fine  cloth  coat,  several  pairs  of 
bed-blankets,  quilts,  comforts,  and,  indeed,  every  thing  of  any 
value  to  them.  While  thus  engaged,  they  saw  a  young  man  who 
lived  near  approaching  the  house,  all  unconscious  of  what  was 
going  on.  He  was  arrested  and  relieved  of  all  his  money,  sev- 
enty-five dollars.  One  rough- looking  Dutch  soldier  rode  out  to  the 
field  and  accosted  the  venerable  man  with  an  imperative  demand 
for  his  money.  When  he  found  he  had  but  two  dollars  in  the 
world,  he  would  not  take  it,  but  rode  back  in  disgust.  A  young 
man — Mr.  Monroe's  nephew — was  met  near  the  house  on  his 
uncle's  only  riding-horse,  with  his  only  saddle  and  bridle.  The 
young  man  was  arrested,  and  the  horse  and  equipments  taken  to 
Glasgow  and  never  heard  from  afterward. 

Thus  in  one  single  hour  the  faithful  servant  of  God  stood 
alone  in  his  field,  stripped  of  every  thing  he  had — his  horse,  watch, 
clothes,  blankets,  bedding — every  thing  of  any  value.  What  must 
have  been  the  feelings  of  Mrs.  Monroe  on  returning  home  after 
the  absence  of  just  one  hour  to  find  her  house  plundered  by  ruf- 
fian soldiery,  and  her  husband  beggared!  To  complete  the  work, 
a  small  squad  of  soldiers  passed  along  soon  afterward,  and  when 
they  could  find  nothing  else  to  steal  or  appropriate,  a  rough, 
drunken  Dutchman  demanded  of  the  old  man  his  woolen  mittens, 
which  a  lady  had  recently  given  him.  He  gave  them  up,  and 
considered  himself  fortunate  to  get  off  so  easy. 

With  such  petty  annoyances,  involving  privation  and  suffer- 


60  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

ing,  this  faithful  minister  of  the  gospel — this  pioneer  and  patriarch 
of  Missouri  Methodism — passed  through  the  dark  and  trying 
scenes  of  the  Civil  War,  always  hopeful  and  joyful  and  ready  to 
rejoice  that  he  was  counted  worthy  to  suffer  for  a  cause  of  which 
he  himself  was  the  finest  type,  and  for  which  he  would  go  even 
to  prison  and  to  death.  To  the  struggling  cause  of  Christ  and 
his  suffering  friends  he  was  a  tower  of  strength ;  to  the  discomfited 
and  disheartened  hosts  of  the  Methodist  Israel  he  was  "  our 
Moses."  When  "  these  calamities  were  overpassed,"  and  the 
shock  of  the  war  had  expended  its  fire  and  force ;  when  the  smoke 
of  battle  had  cleared  away  and  the  storm-cloud  hung  low  upon 
the  horizon,  he  surveyed  the  field,  marked  the  desolations,  meas- 
ured the  extent  of  the  wreck,  discovered  some  remains  of  Zion's 
former  beauty,  while  others,  with  indecent  haste,  sounded  her 
funeral  knell ;  and  his  voice,  like  that  of  a  mighty  chieftain,  was 
heard  over  the  prairies,  along  the  railroads,  and  in  the  cities  of 
Missouri,  calling  the  faithful  to  duty,  and  rallying  the  scattered 
forces  for  counsel.  Upon  his  call  a  few  ministers  and  friends 
convened  in  Palmyra,  June,  1865,  and  decreed  the  life  of  the 
Church,  the  resuscitation  of  her  vital  powers,  the  recovery  of  her 
lost  ground,  and  the  rehabilitation  of  her  distinctive  institutions.* 

REV.  JOHN  MCGLOTHIN. 

The  intelligence  of  the  persecution  of  the 
preachers  comes  to  us  from  every  direction,  and 
we  cannot  pass  them  by  unnoticed  without  doing 
violence  to  our  conviction  of  duty.  Their  names 
should  be  perpetuated  in  the  annals  of  history  to 
the  latest  generation. 

The  Rev.  John  McGlothin  was  a  useful  local 
preacher  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  exemplary 
in  life  and  of  an  unimpeachable  character.  Hear 
of  his  trials :  , 

In  1862  he  was  residing  in  Ray  County,  Mo.,  when  Maj.  Dig- 
gers, the  commander  of  the  post  at  Richmond,  issued  an  order  that 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


1861-62.  Missouri  Conference.  61 

no  minister  of  the  gospel  should  preach  the  gospel  who  did  not 
carry  with  him  the  Union  flag.  A  few  days  after  the  order  came 
out  Mr.  McGlothin  was  called  upon  to  go  to  Knoxville,  CalcKvell 
County,  to  procure  suitable  burial  clothing  for  a  Mrs.  Tilford,  a 
widow,  who  died  in  his  neighborhood — as  he  was  the  only  man 
available  for  that  service.  After  the  purchases  were  made  and  he 
was  ready  to  return,  a  Capt.  Tiffin,  of  Knoxville,  stepped  up  and 
asked  if  he  had  "  reported."  He  answered  in  the  negative,  and 
convinced  the  captain  that  there  was  no  order  requiring  him  to 
report,  as  he  had  license  to  preach.  The  officer  then  asked  him  if 
he  had  a  "  flag."  He  told  him  he  had  not.  "  Will  you  get  one?  " 
"  No,"  said  he ;  "I  will  recognize  no  State  or  military  authority  to 
prescribe  qualifications  for  the  work  of  the  ministry."  The  officer 
at  once  arrested  him.  Mr.  McGlothin  acquainted  Captain  Tiffin 
at  once  with  the  peculiar  character  of  his  business  in  Knoxville 
and  the  necessity  of  his  speedy  return,  offering  at  the  same  time 
his  parole  of  honor  to  report  to  him  at  any  time  or  place  he  might 
designate.  This  he  promptly  refused,  and  the  officer  said  he  would 
ride  out  part  of  the  way  with  him.  When  they  arrived  within  a 
few  miles  of  the  house  where  the  dead  lay  waiting  for  the  inter- 
ment, the  officer  pressed  a  boy  into  service  and  sent  the  burial 
clothes  to  their  destination,  after  detaining  them  three  or  four 
hours  on  the  way.  The  minister  was  not  released,  even  to  attend 
to  the  burial  service,  but  was  kept  in  close  confinement,  dinner- 
less,  supperless,  bedless,  and  comfortless. 

The  next  day,  with  over  twenty  others,  he  was  taken  to  Rich- 
mond and  confined  in  the  fair-grounds  and  in  the  old  college 
building  for  five  weeks,  and  then  unconditionally  released.  The 
only  charge  they  could  bring  against  him  was  that  he  would  not 
take  the  oath  of  allegiance,  give  oond  in  the  sum  of  one  thousand 
dollars  for  his  good  bevavior,  and  buy  a  flag  to  carry  about  with 
him  as  an  evidence  of  his  loyalty  and  a  symbol  of  authority  to 
preach  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Few  instances  of  petty  persecution  in  the  exercise  of  a  little 
brief  authority  can  surpass  this.  It  needs  no  comment  except  to 
add  that  the  minister  who  was  thus  made  a  victim  of  the  narrow- 
est and  meanest  spitefulness  was  a  high-toned  gentleman  of  un- 
blemished character,  against  whom  even  the  petty  military  officers 
and  their  spies  could  never  raise  an  accusation.* 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


62  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

THE  CHURCH  IN  LOUISIANA. 
The  M.  E.  Church  tried  to  take  forcible  pos- 
session of  the  property  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  in  which  effort  she  did  not  finally  succeed. 
Let  us  in  this  case  hear  from  one  who  has  thor- 
oughly investigated  the  subject: 

In  1853  a  deed  to  a  lot  of  ground  in  the  city  was  made  by  Ed- 
ward G.  McQuie  and  wife  to  Edwin  Draper,  John  S.  Markley, 
JohnW.  Allen,  Samuel  O.  Minor,  John  Shurmur,  Joseph  Charle- 
ville,  Ivey  Zumwalt,  David  Watson,  and  Thomas  T.  Stokes,  as 
trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  to  hold  in  trust  for  the  use 
and  benefit  of  said  Church.  Consideration,  $500.  Soon  there- 
after a  commodious  church-edifice  was  erected  on  the  lot  and  ded- 
icated to  the  worship  of  God,  in  the  name  and  for  the  benefit  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South.  It  was  occupied  and  used  by  them  unmo- 
lested until  1862.  In  the  meantime  vacancies  had  occurred  in  the 
original  Board  of  Trustees  by  the  death  of  David  Watson  and  the 
removal  from  the  State  of  Thomas  T.  Stokes. 

These  vacancies  had  been  filled  by  the  regular  authority  of  the 
Church,  and  according  to  law,  by  the  appointment  and  election  of 
Samuel  S.  Allen  and  William  A.  Gunn,  as  seen  in  the  records  of 
the  Quarterly  Conference  for  Louisiana  Station.  But  this  fact 
did  not  prevent  the  tools  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  from  devis- 
ing a  bold  scheme  that  would  put  them  in  the  possession  of  the 
Church  property.  They  could  not  claim  that  the  property  was 
originally  deeded  to  the  M.  E.  Church,  and  was  afterward  wrested 
from  the  rightful  owners,  as  in  the  cases  of  Lexington,  Independ- 
ence, La  Grange,  Boonville,  etc.  That  subterfuge  could  not 
serve  them  in  this  case,  and  to  accomplish  their  purpose  they  de- 
vised another.  It  was  this:  An  ex  parte  petition  was  filed  in  the 
Louisiana  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  setting  forth  the  fact  of  the 
above-mentioned  vacancies  in  the  Board  of  Trustees,  and  praving 
the  court  to  fill  the  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  death  of  David  Wat- 
son by  the  appointment  of  Charles  Hunter,  and  to  appoint  Robert 
S.  Strother  to  fill  the  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  removal  of  T. 
T.  Stokes.  This  petition,  as  it  now  stands  on  the  records  of  the 
court,  was  signed  by  Edwin  Draper,  John  S.  Markley,  John  W. 


iS6i-62.  Missouri  Conference.  63 

Allen,  Ivey  Zumwalt,  Samuel  O.  Miner,  Joseph  Charleville,  and 
John  Shurmur,  and  was  granted  July  21,  1862. 

On  the  second  day  thereafter  (July  23,  1862)  Samuel  O.  Minor, 
John  W.  Allen,  Ivey  Zumwalt,  William  A.  Gunn,  and  S.  S.  Al- 
len filed  a  petition,  asking  the  court  to  vacate  the  order  appointing 
Hunter  and  Strother,  and  set  forth  the  following  facts  why  the 
order  should  be  set  aside :  They  admitted  the  vacancy  occasioned 
by  the  death  of  Watson  and  the  removal  of  Stokes,  but  set  forth 
from  the  Church  records  that  on  the  2ist  day  of  January,  1861, 
Rev.  W.  M.  Newland,  then  preacher  in  charge,  nominated,  and 
the  Quarterly  Conference  elected,  W.  A.  Gunn  to  fill  the  vacancy 
occasioned  by  the  death  of  said  Watson ;  and  that  the  other  va- 
cancy was  filled  by  the  nomination  and  election  of  Samuel  S.  Al- 
len April  23,  1862,  Rev.  W.  G.  Miller  then  preacher  in  charge. 
They  therefore  allege  that  at  the  time  of  the  appointment  by  the 
court  of  Hunter  and  Strother  no  vacancy  existed,  the  same  hav- 
ing been  filled,  according  to  the  law  of  the  Church  made  and  pro- 
vided, and  therefore  the  order  of  the  court  ought  to  be  vacated. 

They  further  represented  that  the  names  of  John  W.  Allen, 
Samuel  O.  Miner,  and  Ivey  Zumwalt  were  used  in  the  original 
petition  without  their  knowledge  or  consent,  and  insisted  that  the 
order  should  be  set  aside  for  that  reason. 

Both  the  petitioners  and  community  were  astonished  when  the 
court  refused  to  vacate  the  order,  and  the  only  recourse  was  an  ap- 
peal to  the  Supreme  Court  of  Missouri  on  a  writ  of  error.  It  may 
not  be  improper  to  state  in  this  place  that  Judge  Gilchrist  Porter, 
then  on  the  bench  of  that  judicial  district,  presided;  and  Thomas 
J.  C.  Fagg,  then  Judge  of  the  Louisiana  Court  of  Common  Pleas, 
was  counsel  for  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  in  his  own  court. 

The  case  was  argued  July  24,  1862,  and  the  petition  was  over- 
ruled. The  petitioners  filed  a  bill  of  exceptions,  and  the  case  went 
up  to  the  Supreme  Court.  The  case  was  not  heard  in  the  Su- 
preme Court  until  January  10,  1866,  when  the  judgment  of  the 
court  below  was  reversed  and  the  case  dismissed  upon  the  ground 
of  irregularity  and  informality. 

The  suit  for  title  was  stricken  from  the  docket  without  being 
heard,  and  those  who  bought  the  lot  and  built  and  paid  for  the 
church  are  again  in  possession  of  their  own ;  albeit  thev  were  kept 
out  of  the  use  of  it  for  nearly  five  years,  and  then  received  it  in  a 
condition  that  required  extensive  repairs,  for  which  those  who  had 


64  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

used  and  damaged  it  had  no  disposition  to  pay  one  dollar.  Thus, 
one  by  one  the  property  that  was  taken  from  the  Church,  South, 
was  restored,  after  being  used  and  abused  by  "  our  friends,  the  en- 
emy." 

Pending  this  case  Mr.  Allen,  counsel  for  plaintiffs  in  error, 
made  a  very  able  argument  upon  the  relation  of  the  Church  to  the 
civil  government.  He  took  high  ground  upon  the  separate  and 
distinct  jurisdictions  of  Church  and  State,  as  understood  by  our 
fathers  and  as  developed  in  this  country  under  the  genius  of  our 
government.  He  characterized  severely  the  efforts  made  by  par- 
tisan fanatics  to  confound  in  fact  what  was  distinct  in  law,  and  to 
unite  the  Church  with  the  State  for  purposes  of  ecclesiastical 
power  and  political  corruption.* 

REV.  R.  N.  T.  HOLLIDAY. 

A  sketch  of  the  persecutions  and  sufferings  of 
this  eminently  good  and  useful  man  was  written  by 
his  personal  friend,  Dr.  Oregon  Richmond,  who 
was  a  Federal  officer  and  desired  to  see  their  cause 
successful  and  triumphant;  but  he  detested  the 
persecutors  of  the  defenseless,  the  helpless,  and 
non-combatant  citizens  of  the  country.  We  ad- 
.mire  his  character  very  much;  there  is  something 
noble  in  it.  Read  what  he  says : 

At  the  request  of  Rev.  R.  N.  T.  Holliday,  I  have  consented  to 
put  together  and  transmit  the  somewhat  remarkable  events  of  that 
period  of  his  life  connected  with  the  late  war  troubles.  His  re- 
quest is  the  result  of  an  antipathy  on  his  part  to  acting  the  part  of 
a  self-eulogist.  In  my  judgment  no  greater  eulogy  can  be  written 
of  a  minister  of  the  gospel  than  that  of  a  calm,  unvarnished  recit- 
al of  the  persecution  to  which  that  class  of  our  citizens  was  sub- 
jected during  the  prevalence  of  and  immediately  subsequent  to  the 
late  war. 

And  perhaps,  after  all,  it  is  but  simple  justice  that  these  facts 
should  be  written  by  one  who  was  an  officer  in  the  Federal  army, 

*Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


i86i-62."  Missouri  Conference.  65 

but  can  thank  God  that  his  military  life  is  unstained  by  a  single 
act  of  cruelty  or  persecution ;  and  above  all  is  he  thankful  that  he 
never  made  use  of  his  military  power  to  war  against  the  institu- 
tions of  heaven  or  the  chosen  instruments  ordained  for  their  estab- 
lishment among  men.  In  other  words,  he  was  not  attached  to  a 
Missouri  regiment,  is  not  a  son  of  Missouri,  and  hence  has  never 
been  instructed  in  the  mysteries  of  that  department  of  military 
tactics  that  teaches  the  wonderful  doctrine  that  the  truest  patriot- 
ism consists  in  the  abuse  of  defenseless  women  and  children,  and 
subversion  of  the  sublimest  precepts  of  religion  by  the  persecution 
and  murder  of  its  chosen  apostles. 

In  September,  1860,  Rev.  R.  N.  T.  Holliday,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  appointed  by  the  Missouri  Conference  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  of  which  he  has  long  been  a  member,  to  Rush- 
ville,  in  Buchanan  County,  Mo.  In  the  ensuing  spring  the  war 
commenced;  but  it  was  not  until  May,  1861,  that  he  received  the 
first  intimation  of  the  approaching  trouble  that  would  draw  him 
into  its  clutches,  and  ultimately  make  him  a  wanderer  and  an  ex- 
ile from  his  chosen  field  of  usefulness. 

About  that  time  a  Union  meeting  was  held  near  Rushville,  and 
addressed  by  Hon.  Willard  P.  Hall  and  others,  from  St.  Joseph. 
Mr.  Holliday  was  urged  to  be  present  and  reply  on  behalf  of  the 
South.  This  he  declined  to  do.  He  was  not  even  present  at  the 
meeting,  believing  that  ministers  of  the  gospel  should  keep  them- 
selves unspotted  from  the  political  strifes  of  men.  Yet  his  ene- 
mies said  he  staid  away  through  personal  fear,  and  he  was  hence- 
forth the  subject  of  various  kinds  of  annoyances  and  petty 
persecutions. 

The  Conference  of  September,  1861,  returned  Mr.  Holliday  to 
Rushville.  He  was  not  molested  until  March,  1862,  when  Brig.- 
Gen.  W.  P.  Hall  issued  a  proclamation  requiring  all  men  subject 
to  military  duty  to  enroll  themselves  in  the  State  militia.  Mr. 
Holliday  refused  to  enroll,  upon  the  ground  that  ministers  were 
exempt  from  military  duty.  Gen.  Hall  sent  him  word  at  once 
that  if  he  did  not  enroll  he  would  have  him  arrested.  Mr.  Holli- 
day replied  that,  being  exempt  from  military  duty  by  the  laws  of 
the  State,  he  could  not  but  consider  the  demand  extra-official,  and  if 
an  arrest  must  be  the  result  of  non-compliance  with  an  illegal  de- 
mand he  preferred  to  be  arrested.  Upon  this  Gen.  Hall  addressed 
•a  note  to  Mr.  Holliday  in  the  politest  terms,  requesting  an  inter- 
5 


66  Methodism  in  Missouri.  "1861-62. 

view  to  arrange  the  difficulties.  Trusting  the  general's  honor, 
Mr.  Holliday  complied;  but,  upon  presenting  himself  at  head- 
quarters, the  general  refused  to  see  him,  and  ordered  him  taken 
to  the  provost- marshal's  office  for  enrollment.  Gen.  Bassett, 
the  provost-marshal,  had  the  entrance  to  his  office  securely 
guarded  after  Mr.  Holliday  was  admitted,  and  informed  him  that 
he  must  enroll  under  Order  19,  as  a  Union  man,  and  submit  to 
a  physical  examination ;  or  under  Order  24,  as  a  rebel  sympathizer, 
and  pay  a  commutation  fee  of  $30.  Finding  submission  inevita- 
ble, or  something  worse,  Mr.  Holliday  registered  under  Order  24, 
but  refused  to  pay  the  commutation  as  an  unlawful  and  an  unau- 
thorized exaction,  and  demanded  his  exemption  papers  as  a  min- 
ister of  the  gospel,  at  the  same  time  producing  his  ordination 
parchment.  Gen.  Bassett,  after  some  delay,  gave  him  exemption 
papers ;  and,  after  considerable  annovance,  he  gave  him  a  pass  also, 
which  enabled  him  to  travel  back  and  forth  and  fill  his  appoint- 
ments without  further  molestation  than  an  occasional  petty  perse- 
cution— the  instigation  of  malice — and  an  occasional  threat  of  be- 
ing shot. 

During  the  summer  of  1862  Mr.  Bassett  was  superseded  in  the 
office  of  provost-marshal  by  a  Mr.  W.  Tool,  who  had  been  up  to 
that  period  a  minister  in  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  He  had,  how- 
ever, apostatized  and  joined  the  M.  E.  Church  (North). 

Mr.  Bassett's  brief  apprenticeship  in  villainy  fitted  him  for,  and 
he  was  appointed  to,  a  higher  office.  Mr.  Holliday  was  requested 
to  fill  the  pulpit  made  vacant  by  the  military  prohibition  upon  Rev. 
\ty.  M.  Rush,  of  St.  Joseph ;  and  the  ladies  of  the  Church  in  which 
Mr.  Rush  had  been  silenced  waited  on  Provost-marshal  Tool,  and 
requested  permission  for  Mr.  Holliday  to  fill  the  silent  pulpit.  Mr. 
Tool,  who  was  acting  in  the  interest  of  the  Northern  Methodists, 
refused  to  permit  Mr.  Holliday  to  come  to  St.  Joseph  to  preach  the 
gospel. 

In  September,  1862,  Mr.  Holliday  was  sent  to  Platte  City,  and 
there  remained  unmolested  until  the  following  June,  when  soldiers 
from  Kansas  took  his  horse,  which  he  never  saw  afterward.  He 
borrowed  another,  which  was  also  stolen  and  carried  off.  He  thus 
lost  two  horses  in  as  many  weeks. 

About  the  middle  of  July,  1863,  Col.  Jennison,  of  Kansas,  went 
to  Platte  City  and  burned  the  town.  His  men  were  ordered  to 
shoot  Mr.  Holliday  at  sight.  Knowing  the  character  of  JennisonV 


1861-62.  Missouri  Conference.  67 

men,  and  being  apprised  of  the  order  by  a  Union  man,  Mr.  Holli- 
day  made  good  his  escape,  leaving  his  family  at  Mr.  Redman's. 
On  the  evening  of  his  flight  his  house,  containing  all  he  had  in  the 
world  except  what  they  had  on,  was  given  to  the  flames.  His  fam- 
ily were  thus  made  destitute  and  reduced  to  beggary. 

The  next  day,  at  3  P.M.,  Mr.  Holliday  was  arrested,  by  order  of 
a  Clinton  County  militia  captain,  and  taken  to  Plattsburg.  He 
was  there  subjected  to  some  indignities,  until  Mr.  Cockrell  in- 
formed Capt.  Irvine,  commander  of  the  post,  of  the  facts,  who,  be- 
ing a  gentleman  and  a  Mason,  ordered  the  instant  release  of  Mr. 
Holliday. 

The  next  day  Capt.  Irvine  was  killed  in  an  engagement  with  the 
rebels.  This  very  much  enraged  the  militia,  and  again  an  order 
was  issued  to  shoot  Mr.  Holliday  on  sight.  He  again  made  his 
escape  by  flight  and  concealment.  He  remained  ten  days  at  the 
residence  of  Mr.  Powell,  of  Clinton  County ;  but,  upon  hearing  of 
the  order  to  shoot  him,  he,  with  two  other  ministers  (Messrs.  Tar- 
water  and  Jones),  took  refuge  in  the  woods,  and  made  their  way  on 
foot  to  Osborn,  where  Mr.  Holliday  met  his  family,  and  all  took 
the  train  to  Quincy,  111.  They  remained  in  Illinois  till  the  war 
closed,  in  1865,  doing  the  best  he  could  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel. 
Returning  to  Missouri  in  1865,  he  met  the  Conference  at  Hanni- 
bal, and  was  appointed  to  the  Shelbyville  Circuit. 

By  this  time  the  new  Constitution  had  been  declared  the  fun- 
damental law  of  the  State,  and  under  it  all  ministers  of  the  gos- 
pel were  required  to  take  the  iron-clad  test  oath  as  a  qualification 
for  the  work  of  the  ministry,  or  subject  themselves  to  arrest,  in-.* 
dictment,  fine,  or  imprisonment. 

Actuated  by  the  same  motives  of  conscience  that  impelled  all 
true  ministers  of  the  gospel,  he  promptly  refused  to  take  and  sub- 
scribe said  oath.  He  was  therefore  arrested  and  indicted  by  the 
grand  jury  of  Shelby  County  for  preaching  and  teaching  as  a 
minister  of  the  gospel  without  having,  under  oath,  attested  his 
past  and  present  loyalty  to  the  government  of  the  United  States. 
A  copy  of  the  indictment  is  in' Mr.  Holliday's  possession,  to  be 
handed  down  to  his  children  as  a  memento  of  his  sufferings  and 
triumphs  in  the  cause  of  his  Master.  It  will  doubtless  make  their 
faith  doubly  strong  in  the  principles  of  that  holy  religion  for 
which  he  endured  so  much  privation,  persecution,  and  personal 
danger. 


68  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

The  facts  above  narrated  I  have  received  from  Mr.  Holliday's 
own  lips.  He  was  so  reticent  of  matters  concerning  himself  per- 
sonally that  I  cannot  but  regard  this  as  a  very  meager  epitome  of 
all  he  was  required  to  do  and  to  suffer  in  the  performance  of  the 
work  his  Master  gave  him  to  do.  He  evidently  is  already  richly 
rewarded  in  the  depth  of  his  own  consciousness,  and  justly  decid- 
ed that  nothing  man  may  say  for  him  can  serve  in  the  smallest 
degree  to  increase  his  reward. 

[Signed]  OREGON  RICHMOND. 

The  reader  will  readily  agree  with  this  writer 
that  there  is  something  magnanimous  in  the  char- 
acter of  the  author  of  the  foregoing  sketch. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

Session  of  the  Conference  Changed  from  Warrensburg  to  Arrow 
Rock,  and  from  Arrow  Rock  to  Waverlj  in  Consequence  of 
Great  Excitement  at  the  Two  Former  Places — Dr.  W.  M. 
Leftwich  Captured  by  a  Squad  of  Soldiers  While  on  His  Way 
to  the  Conference — His  Account  of  It — Small  Attendance  at 
Conference  Owing  to  War  Troubles — Short  Session,  Leaving 
Much  of  the  Work  To  Be  Done  by  Presiding  Elders — Perse- 
cution of  Dr.  D.  R.  McAnally — His  Wonderful  Life  in  Various 
Departments  of  Usefulness — Gives  a  Statement  of  His  Troub- 
les—  Publishing  House  and  Book  Depository  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  in  St.  Louis — Rev.  James  M.  Proctor  Tells  of 
His  Trials— Rev.  M.  M.  Pugh— His  Useful  Life— Tells  of  His 
Persecution  During  the  War — Brutal  Murder  of  Rev.  Green 
Woods — A  Detailed  Account  of  That  Dreadful  Affair  by  His 
Own  Daughter. 

THERE  are  no  published  minutes  of  the  session 
of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference  for  the 
year  1861.  We  learn  that  the  appointment  had  been 
made  to  meet  at  Warrensburg,  but  in  view  of  the 
great  excitement  and  political  troubles  at  that 
place  it  was  thought  advisable  to  meet  at  Arrow 
Rock,  Saline  County.  There  the  Conference  or- 
ganized September  25,  1861,  with  D.  A.  Leeper 
in  the  chair  and  W.  M.  Prottsman  Secretary. 
Danger  threatening  them  at  Arrow  Rock,  the 
Conference  adjourned  to  Waverly.  Dr.  W.  M. 
Leftwich  made  a  vain  effort  to  reach  it.  He  says : 

I  was  prevented  from  attending  on  that  occasion  only  by  the 
untimely  interference  of  a  small  detachment  of  Col.  Nugent's 
command,  then  posted  at  Kansas  City. 

(69) 


70  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

I  had  announced  on  Sabbath  to  my  congregation  that  I  would 
start  to  Conference  next  day,  stating  where  it  would  be  held,  and 
about  how  long  I  expected  to  be  absent. 

On  Monday  morning  early,  in  company  with  Mr.  H.  B.  Con- 
well,  a  brother-in-law  and  a  steward  in  the  Church,  I  started  for 
Conference.  Just  as  we  were  passing  out  of  the  city,  on  the 
main  road  to  Independence,  we  discovered  a  small  squad  of  sol- 
diers riding  slowly  about  half  a  mile  ahead  of  us.  To  avoid 
molestation  and  detention,  we  took  a  by-road  that  would  intersect 
the  Westport  and  Independence  road,  on  reaching  which  we  dis- 
covered the  soldiers  still  ahead  of  us,  and  we  began  at  once  to 
conjecture  some  designs  upon  us.  They  had  halted  by  a  peach- 
orchard,  and  were  helping  themselves  when  wre  drove  up.  They 
very  politely  gave  us  of  their  peaches,  and  requested  us  not  to 
go  ahead  of  them. 

We  traveled  on  behind  them  for  some  little  distance,  when  the 
officer  in  command  stopped  to  talk  with  a  farmer  by  the  roadside 
who  knew  me  well,  and  asked  when  we  drove  up  if  I  was  on  my 
way  to  Conference. 

"  What  Conference  ?  "  asked  the  officer. 

"The  Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  at  Arrow 
Rock,"  I  replied,  quite  indifferently. 

"What!  that  Secesh  concern?  I'll  see  to  that.  No  such  body 
of  traitors  can  meet  in  this  State."  And  with  the  last  words  he 
spurred  his  horse  up  with  his  command  and  detailed  four  men  to 
put  us  under  arrest  and  guard  us  to  Independence.  With  "  two 
behind  and  two  before  "  we  were  ordered  to  "  drive."  Thus  we 
traveled  until  we  reached  Rock  Creek,  two  miles  from  Independ- 
ence, when  an  orderly  was  sent  back,  who  dismounted  and  or- 
dered us  to  "  halt."  "  I  want  you  men  to  get  out  of  this,"  he 
said. 

"For  what?"  I  asked,  mildly  protesting  against  the  pro- 
ceedings. 

"  I  want  to  send  this  buggy  back  to  camp,"  he  replied.  "  We 
have  use  for  such  things  sometimes  to  ride  our  wives  ajid  children 
out  a  little." 

"Where  is  your  camp?"  was  asked  by  Mr.  Conwell,  at  the 
same  time  declaring  that  the  horse  and  buggy  belonged  to  him. 
And  when  informed  that  their  camp  was  in  Kansas  City,  at  Col. 
Nugent's  head-quarters,  he  asked:  "Then  why  can't  you  send  us 


1861-62.  «5V.  Louis  Conference.  71 

back  to  Kansas  City  in  the  buggy,  under  guard  if  you  like.     We 
live  in  Kansas  City." 

"  No,"  said  he ;  "  no  use  talking.  If  you  are  loyal  men,  you  can 
afford  to  walk  ten  miles  for  the  sake  of  the  government ;  and  if 
you  are  disloyal,  we  are  not  around  hauling  rebels.  Get  out!  " 

We  did  not  wait  for  another  invitation,  but  got  out;  and  when 
we  found  it  was  not  us  but  ours  they  wanted,  we  felt  somewhat 
relieved,  took  a  luncheon  to  stay  the  appetite,  and  then  the  roof 
of  the  stage  an  hour  after,  which  safely  landed  us  back  whence 
we  started. 

Mr.  Conwell  soon  obtained  his  horse  and  buggy,  and  a  mes- 
sage came  to  me  that,  if  I  would  stay  at  home  and  attend  to  my 
own  business,  I  would  not  be  arrested ;  but  it  would  not  be  well 
for  me  to  make  another  attempt  to  go  to  Conference.® 

It  was  a  source  of  great  regret  that  so  few  of 
the  preachers  could-  reach  the  seat  of  the  Confer- 
ence— particularly  from  St.  Louis  and  the  south- 
western part  of  the  State.  Indeed,  the  troubles 
were  well-nigh  at  their  worst.  No  safety  any- 
where. It  was  unsafe  to  be  at  home,  and  equally 
unsafe  to  be  away  from  home.  It  was  death  to 
stay,  death  to  go.  Many  of  the  preachers  felt 
that  if  they  should  start  to  Conference  they  would 
fall  by  the  way.  Under  these  circumstances  only 
a  few  of  the  ministers  were  able  to  attend  the  Con- 
ference. Not  only  so,  but  those  who  were  present 
found  themselves  in  no  proper  state  of  mind  to 
transact  important  business.  They  were  in  great 
suspense,  expecting  every  mail  to  bring  them  in- 
telligence of  some  great  disaster  at  home.  With 
such  thoughts  and  feelings  it  would  be  very  diffi- 
cult to  attend  properly  to  the  business  of  the  Con- 

*Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


72  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

ference.  They  expedited  matters  as  rapidly  as 
possible,  and  after  a  short  and  unsatisfactory  ses- 
sion the  Conference  adjourned,  leaving  many  of 
the  appointments  to  be  made  by  the  presiding 
elders  as  best  they  could  under  the  unfavorable 
circumstances.  How  any  person  can  oppose  the 
office  of  presiding  elder  this  writer  cannot  im- 
agine. In  his  judgment  it  is  much  nearer  being 
the  center  wheel  than  the  fifth  wheel  of  the 
Church. 

THE    TROUBLES    OF    REV.    D.    R.    MCANALLY, 

D.D.,  DURING  THE  CIVIL  WAR. 
It  would  seem  to  be  an  act  of  supererogation  in 
this  writer  to  give  to  the  reader  a  delineation  of 
the  life  and  character  of  Dr.  D.  R.  McAnally — a 
man  so  well  and  extensively  known  throughout  the 
length  and  breadth  of  this  vast  country,  from  the 
Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  coast.  But  "honor  to 
whom  honor  is  due"  is  both  just  and  right. 
There  is  no  flattery  in  telling  the  truth,  and  the 
truth  cannot  hurt  a  truthful  man.  If  he  has 
reached  a  position  of  eminence  and  distinction  in 
the  elements  of  goodness  and  greatness,  should 
not  the  fact  be  made  known  for  the  good  of 
others,  that  they  may  be  inspired  with  a  laudable 
ambition  to  attain  similar  renown  in  every  thing 
that  is  good  and  great?  It  is  the  duty  and  the 
pleasure  of  the  historian  to  hold  up  such  charac- 
ters before  the  public,  that  they  may  catch  the  in- 
spiration and  do  likewise. 


iS6i-62.  St.  Louis  Conference.  73 

Dr.  D.  R.  McAnally  holds  a  front  position, 
side  by  side  with  the  ablest,  wisest,  and  greatest 
men  of  the  Church  and  of  the  country  as  well. 
He  has  filled  every  place  to  which  he  has  been  as- 
signed in  the  providence  of  God  with  marked 
success  and  ability.  For  scores  of  years  he  has 
been  a  telling  power  in  the  pulpit  as  an  able  minis- 
ter of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Always  entertaining 
the  idea  that  simple  truth  is  the  greatest  power,  he 
has  preached  the  gospel  in  its  clearness,  simplicity, 
and  purity,  accompanied  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  mak- 
ing it  the  wonderful  power  of  God  in  the  salvation 
of  sinners,  by  hundreds  and  by  thousands.  His 
voice  has  been  heard  in  the  proclamation  of  the 
glorious  gospel  for  more  than  half  a  century,  in 
the  Middle,  the  Southern,  and  Western  States. 
Thank  God  that  voice  is  still  heard  on  the  walls  of 
Zion,  proclaiming  salvation  to  a  lost  world ! 

For  many  years  he  was  engaged  in  the  cause  of 
Christian  education,  which  must  accompany  the 
preaching  of  the  gospel  to  give  it  durability  and 
perpetuity.  Education  is  the  handmaid  of  Chris- 
tianity, and  must  go  with  it  wherever  it  goes. 
Thus  was  he  employed  in  institutions  of  learning, 
educating  the  youth  of  the  country  and  qualifying 
them  for  the  responsible  stations  of  life  they  were 
destined  to  fill,  in  society,  in  the  Church,  and  in 
the  State.  In  this,  as  in  other  fields  of  usefulness, 
he  distinguished  himself  as  a  competent  and  suc- 
cessful educator. 

It  is  our  conviction  that    no  truer  patriot  ever 


74  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

lived  in  America ;  that  no  one  has  studied  the  sci- 
ence of  civil  government  more  thoroughly;  that 
very  few,  if  any,  understand  the  principles  of  the 
Constitution  and  the  laws  of  our  country  better 
than  he.  What  is  still  better,  his  patriotism  is 
practical  as  well  as  theoretical.  He  conscien- 
tiously obeys  the  laws  of  his  country,  and  always 
has  done  it.  He  has  been  outspoken  and  loud- 
spoken  on  this  subject  in  trying  to  persuade  others 
to  follow  his  example  of  loyalty.  For  years  he 
has  been  a  faithful  sentinel,  standing  upon  the 
watch-tower  of  our  country  sounding  the  alarm 
through  the  "  News  of  the  Week,"  that  very  im- 
portant department  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian 
Advocate.  Had  his  voice  been  heeded,  there 
would  not  have  been  a  civil  war. 

About  thirty-nine  years  ago  he  was  appointed 
editor  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 
When  he  came  to  this  State  to  fill  the  editorial 
chair  of  that  paper  he  identified  himself  with  the 
interests  and  destiny  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
in  Missouri.  Ever  since  that  time  he  has  used  all 
his  resources  and  employed  all  his  energies  and 
powers  in  advancing  the  interests  of  said  Church. 
But  the  important  enterprise  which  has  engaged 
his  undivided  attention  and  received  his  indefati- 
gable and  ceaseless  labors  is,  and  has  been  for 
many  long  years,  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 
He  came  West  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a 
Church  paper  of  the  highest  order.  Let  his  many 
thousand  readers  tell  how  well  he  has  succeeded. 


1861-62.  St-  Louis  Conference.  75 

Has  it  not  been  the  popular  religious  paper  of  the 
West  for  more  than  thirty-five  years?  At  the 
present  day  it  has  a  circulation  in  almost  every 
State  in  the  Union.  Has  he  not  a  name  in  jour- 
nalism equal  to  that  of  any  editor  in  this  country? 

He  had,  too,  a  noble  Christian  object  in  build- 
ing up  a  first-class  paper  in  Missouri.  Through 
that  medium  he  could  teach  and  preach  to  many 
thousands  at  the  same  time.  How  many  families 
all  over  the  country,  who  are  deprived  of  sanct- 
uary privileges,  hail  with  pleasure  the  weekly 
visitation  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate!  In 
it  they  find  much  to  cheer  and  comfort  them,  and 
many  sound  and  instructive  religious  lessons.  He 
is  also  a  man  of  ripe  scholarship  and  high  literary 
attainments.  As  an  author,  he  has  contributed 
several  valuable  books  to  our  Church  literature. 
Yet  this  pre-eminently  useful  and  good  man  did 
not  escape  the  severe  ordeal  of  fierce  persecution 
during  the  Civil  War. 

By  the  request  of  his  friends  he  has  given  the 
following  statement  of  his  trials  and  troubles : 

On  the  2ist  day  of  April,  1862,  I  was  arrested  by  the  order  of 
the  provost-marshal  at  St.  Louis,  and  immediately  imprisoned  in 
what  was  then  called  "  Myrtle  Street  Military  Prison."  No  rea- 
sons were  given ;  none  were  asked,  as  arbitrary  arrests  were  then 
matters  of  every-day  occurrence ;  and  in  most  cases  if  reasons  were 
asked  none  were  given. 

From  the  first  hour  of  my  imprisonment  I  calmly  but  firmly 
determined  that,  with  a  perfect  consciousness  of  the  purity  of  mv 
motives  and  rectitude  of  my  conduct,  I  had  violated  no  law,  either 
civil  or  military;  that  in  my  heart,  in  my  conduct  and  conversa- 
tion, I  had  been  true  to  the  real  interests  of  my  country ;  I  would 


76  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

take  no  oath,  give  no  bond,  nor  ask  any  favors,  either  directly  or 
indirectly.  Nor  did  I  do  any  of  these  things  from  the  first  to  the 
last.  I  never  asked  why  I  had  been  arrested,  what  were  the 
charges,  what  the  military  intended  to  do,  or  what  they  wanted 
me  to  do.  I  knew  there  were  no  grounds  for  any  charges  what- 
ever; that  the  whole  procedure,  in  regard  to  myself  and  others, 
was  a  low,  cowardly  effort  to  intimidate  and  humiliate  men  who 
formed  their  own  opinions,  preserved  their  own  self-respect,  and 
refused  to  be  swayed  to  and  fro  by  the  influence  or  mere  dicta  of 
blind  passion;  so  that,  without  any  thing  like  stubbornness,  and  in 
the  entire  absence,  I  trust,  of  all  unchristian  or  ungentlemanly 
feeling,  I  resolved  to  make  no  concessions — having  none  to  make 
— ask  no  favors,  nor  do  any  thing  else  that  might  be  construed, 
either  directly  or  indirectly,  into  an  acknowledgment  on  my  part 
of  the  right  of  the  military  to  institute  and  carry  out  such  proceed- 
ings. 

Besides,  I  was  satisfied  that  it  was  not  against  me  personally  so 
much  as  against  me  as  the  representative  of  a  Christian  denomina- 
tion— the  M.  E.  Church,  South — that  this  warfare  was  to  be  waged. 
Many  of  the  ministers  of  that  denomination  had  even  then  been 
driven  from  their  flocks  and  from  the  State ;  others  had  seen  the 
storm  coming,  and  had  left;  while  many  others,  in  different  parts 
of  the  State,  had  been  put  under  heavy  bonds  by  provost-marshals ; 
and  then,  or  soon  after,  some  six  or  eight  had  been  shot  down  as  if 
they  had  been  ferocious  beasts.  Some  of  those  arrested  had  been 
told  by  military  commanders  that  the  fact  of  their  being  ministers  of 
the  M.E.  Church,  South,  was  "enough  to  hang  them;"  and  many 
of  our  members  were  put  under  bonds  or  sent  to  prison  for  no  other 
ostensible  reason  than  that  they  had  subscribed  for  and  paid  for  and 
read  the  St.  Louis  Chris'ian  Advocate,  an  official  organ  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  then  and  for  more  than  ten  years  previously  un- 
der my  editorial  management.  I  was  not  a  blatant  abolitionist,  sa\6 
had  thrown  some  serious  impediments  in  the  way  of  ecclesiastical 
radicalism ;  hence  the  determination  to  be  rid  both  of  the  paper 
and  its  editor. 

At  various  times  during  more  than  three  months  previous  to 
the  arrest  I  had  been  warned  of  my  danger,  because  of  the  relig- 
ious rather  than  the  political  opposition  to  me ;  and  some  of  my 
friends  advised  me  to  leave,  which  I  could  have  done  any  day  pre- 
vious to  the  arrest. 


1861-62.  Si-  Louis  Conference.  77 

On  Sunday,  the  thirteenth  of  April,  there  was  a  consultation 
among  the  "  faithful "  as  to  what  course  had  best  be  pursued  in 
reference  to  the  St.  Louis  Advocate  and  its  editor.  At  this  con- 
sultation it  was  proposed : 

First,  to  incite  the  soldiers,  and  let  them  tear  down  the  building 
and  demolish  the  office  of  publication.  But  that  proposition  was 
rejected,  because  it  was  thought  the  influence  on  the  minds  of  the 
people  of  the  State  would  be  bad ;  that  it  would  be  going  further 
than  would  be  safe  to  their  own  cause. 

Second,  it  was  then  proposed  and  agreed  to  that  an  indictment 
for  conspiracy — conspiring  with  others  against  the  government  of 
the  United  States — should  be  drawn  up  for  the  action  of  the 
grand  jury  of  the  United  States  District  Court,  which  was  to  sit 
the  next  day;  and,  in  the  event  of  the  jury  failing  to  find  a  true 
bill,  why  then  I  must  be  summarily  and  arbitrarily  arrested  by 
the  provost-marshal,  sent  to  prison,  and  the  paper  suppressed. 
Accordingly  the  next  day  (Monday,  the  i4th)  the  court  met  and 
the  grand  jury  was  empaneled.  Soon  after  a  bill  was  presented 
them.  Diligent  inquiry  was  made ;  witnesses  were  summoned  and 
examined ;  day  after  day  the  matter  dragged  on,  until  finally,  on 
Saturday,  the  igth,  the  jury,  having  completed  their  work,  were 
discharged,  and  no  presentment  was  made  against  the  Advocate  or 
its  editor.  Partisans  as  they  were,  and  corrupt  as  I  knew  some  of 
them  to  have  been,  they  would  not  say  on  their  oaths  that  a  true 
bill  for  conspiracy  could  be  found.  Hence,  in  accordance  with  the 
programme  previously  prepared,  on  Monday  following  the  paper 
was  arbitrarily  suppressed,  and  I  arrested  and  imprisoned  by  order 
of  the  provost-marshal,  as  already  stated.  The  marshal  was  one 
Capt.  Leighton,  a  man  whose  intellectual,  social,  and  moral  qual- 
ities and  whose  early  life  and  associations  seem  to  have  eminently 
qualified  him  for  the  work  he  was  called  on  to  perform. 

The  keeper  of  the  prison  placed  me  in  a  room  twelve  or  fifteen 
feet  square,  with  ten  other  persons,  all  of  whom  were  genteel, 
worthy  men,  and  some  of  them  highly  intellectual  and  cultivated. 
So  far,  therefore,  as  they  were  concerned,  my  situation  was  alto- 
gether agreeable  and  pleasant.  They  uniformly  and  invariably 
treated  me  with  respect  and  kindness,  and  really  seemed  to  vie 
with  each  other  in  manifestations  of  kindly  feeling. 

In  the  same  prison,  in  different  parts,  there  were  perhaps  from 
a  hundred  to  a  hundred  and  fifty  persons,  a  few  of  whom  had  been 


78  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

regularly  in  the  Confederate  service  and  captured;  others  had 
been  in  the  Federal  service,  and  were  there  in  prison  for  crime ; 
while  the  great  majority  were  citizens  from  different  parts  of  the 
State,  arrested  on  mere  suspicion,  and  in  some  cases  had  been  im- 
prisoned for  weeks  and  months  with  only  the  scant  clothing  they 
happened  to  have  on  when  arrested.  Some  fifty  or  sixty  such  as 
these  were  in  a  miserable  condition.  But  under  the  rags  and  dirt 
that  covered  them  there  were  some  as  noble  hearts  as  ever  throbbed. 
These,  too,  after  I  had  been  but  a  few  days  in  prison,  all  treated  me 
with  respect  and  kindness ;  nor  did  any  of  the  officers  of  the  prison 
ever  use  to  me  a  disrespectful  or  an  unkind  word.  I  endeavored 
to  deport  myself  in  a  dignified,  respectful,  gentlemanly,  and  Chris- 
tian manner,  and  was  everywhere  met  with  a  corresponding 
course. 

It  was  my  understanding  at  the  time  that  the  keeper  of  the  pris- 
on was  allowed  a  per  diem  for  feeding  the  prisoners ;  but  whether 
that  was  so  or  not  he  evidently  drew  rations  for  all,  but  allowed 
some  twelve  or  fifteen  to  have  their  meals  sent  regularly  from  the 
Virginia  Hotel,  and  I  verily  believe  the  hotel  keeper  sent  the 
"best  his  house  could  afford."  My  meals  were  sent  regularly 
three  times  each  day  by  an  estimable  family  living  close  by. 

On  the  2Oth  the  officer  of  the  prison  was  directed  to  release  me 
on  my  verbal  parole  to  report  forthwith  at  the  office  of  the  pro- 
vost-marshal, which  I  did,  and  was  there  informed  that  charges 
and  specifications  had  been  drawn  up,  to  which  I  would  be  re- 
quired to  answer  before  a  military  commission  on  the  23d,  and 
on  my  verbal  parole  I  was  released  till  that  time. 

23d.  Reported  accordingly,  when  the  parole  was  extended  to 
Monday,  the  26th. 

On  Mondav,  the  26th  of  May,  I  appeared  before  what  was 
called  a  "  military  commission,"  composed  of  Col.  Merrill,  Maj. 
Straw,  and  Capt.  Howard,  the  latter  of  whom  acted  as  Judge  Ad- 
vocate. These  were  all  of  the  volunteer  service,  and,  except  the 
colonel,  were,  perhaps,  in  the  service  more  in  name  than  in 
reality.  The  charge  I  was  required  to  answer  to  was  that  of  hav- 
ing violated  the  articles  of  wrar  by  the  publication  of  sundry  speci- 
fied articles  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate.  It  was  a  little  re- 
markable that  a  number  of  the  articles  complained  of  had  been 
copied  from  the  foreign  quarterlies,  or  from  Black-food's  Maga- 
zine, which  publications  h'ad  been  freely  circulated  in  the  city 


1861-62.  *3V   Louis  Conference.  79 

from  one  to  three  weeks  before  I  made  the  extracts.  I  objected 
in  form  to  being  tried  by  that  tribunal,  alleging  that  if  I  had 
committed  an  offense  at  all  it  was  an  offense  against  civil  and 
not  military  law,  and  claimed  as  a  citizen  and  civilian  to  be  tried 
by  the  civil  laws.  I  further  objected  on  the  grounds  that  many, 
if  not  all,  the  articles  complained  of  were  published  before  the 
proclamation  of  martial  law  in  St.  Louis;  and,  as  no  war  had 
been  formally  declared,  I  could  not,  under  the  circumstances,  be 
justly  tried  by  the  articles  of  war.  Several  other  exceptions  were 
regularly  filed,  but  ajl  were  overruled,  as,  indeed,  I  supposed 
they  would  be,  and  only  entered  them  to  make  a  fair  and  full 
record. 

The  trial  proceeded.  The  Judge  Advocate  threw  on  the  table 
a  number  of  copies  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate,  with  cer- 
tain articles  therein  marked,  but  did  not  read  them  openly ;  and  if 
either  he  or  other  members  of  the  "commission  "  ever  read  them, 
the  fact  was  and  is  unknown  to  me.  The  fiscal  agent  of  the 
publishing  house  whence  the  Advocate  was  issued  was  examined 
at  great  length  and  with  great  care,  and  to  all  questions  asked  he 
gave  distinct,  prompt,  and  truthful  answers.  This  ended  the  first 
day's  proceedings. 

On  the  second  day  a  number  of  gentlemen  were  introduced, 
some  who  were  well  known  to  be  among  the  most  "  loyal  of  the 
loyal,"  and  others  who  were  suspected  of  having  Southern  sym- 
pathies," when  my  manner  of  life,  public  and  private,  my  man- 
ner of  preaching,  and  the  character  and  tone  of  my  public  prayers, 
were  all  diligently  inquired  into,  but  no  one  was  found  who,  upon 
his  oath,  would  say  that  he  ever  saw  or  heard  me  say  or  do  aught 
that  was  inconsistent  with  the  character  of  a  peaceful,  law-abid- 
ing citizen  and  Christian  minister. 

I  continued  to  introduce  witnesses  on  these  points  until  the 
Court  expressed  their  entire  satisfaction. 

It  was  then  ordered  that  what  defense  I  might  choose  to  make 
be  prepared  and  presented  to  the  Court  on  the  next  day.  Ac- 
cordingly, on  the  opening  of  the  court  on  the  third  day,  I  read  a 
short  paper  setting  forth  the  grounds  on  which  I  thought  I  was 
entitled  to  be  released  from  the  prosecution.  This  closed  the 
trial.  I  was  then  remanded  to  the  care  of  the  provost- marshal, 
who,  upon  my  verbal  pledge  "  not  to  give  aid  and  comfort  to  the 
enemies  of  the  United  States,  nor  to  leave  the  County  of  St.  Louis, 


8o  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

and  to  report  myself  at  the  office  whenever  required,"  allowed  me 
to  go.  This  parole  was  kept  hanging  over  me  until  the  ipth  of 
November  1865,  three  years  and  six  months  from  the  time  of  the 
triak  The  decision  of  the  court  by  which  I  was  tried  I  have 
never  had  nor  ever  known  to  this  good  hour! 

I  kept  the  parole  faithfully,  because  it  was  a  parole  of  honor. 
To  be  sure  I  suffered  many  inconveniences  and  discomforts  be- 
cause of  it,  but  still  kept  it,  and  did  it  uncomplainingly. 

On  Sunday,  the  loth  day  of  May,  1863,  while  preparing  for  the 
evening  service  for  the  Church,  I  was  agajji  arrested,  this  time  by 
order  of  Provost-marshal  Dick.  The  arrest  was  made  at  my 
house.  After  gathering  a  bundle  of  clothes,  and  having  prayers 
with  my  motherless  children,  commending  them  to  "  Him  that 
judgeth  righteously,"  I  accompanied  the  officer  and  was  by  him 
delivered  to  the  keeper  of  "  Gratiot  Street  Military  Prison."  Here 
there  were  a  great  number  of  persons,  many  prisoners  of  war, 
and  many  citizens  from  different  parts  of  the  State,  some  of 
whom  had  been  long  confined,  and  there  were  many  others,  resi- 
dents in  the  city,  who  had  a  little  while  before  been  brought  in. 

On  the  next  day,  Monday,  nth,  quite  a  number  of  us  were 
notified  that  we  would  be  sent  South  beyond  the  Federal  lines, 
and  would  be  started  at  12  o'clock  on  Wednesday,  the  i3th.  We 
accordingly  made  what  preparation  we  could.  I  was  informed 
that  I  would  be  allowed  to  carry  a  limited  amount  of  clothing 
and  two  hundred  dollars  in  money.  The  clothing  I  had.  The 
money  I  had  not ;  had  but  a  very  few  dollars  in  the  world,  and 
was  leaving  my  children  not  only  motherless,  but  penniless  and 
helpless.  Some  friends  outside  the  prison  learned  my  condition, 
and  the  two  hundred  dollars  were  quickly  furnished.  One-half 
the  sum  was  sent  by  a  high-toned  gentleman  who  was  then  serv- 
ing as  a  colonel  in  the  Federal  service,  a  man  whose  every  sense 
of  justice,  honor,  and  fairness  was  outraged  by  the  proceedings 
against  me.  Had  the  sum  been  needed,  I  believe  two  thousand 
or  ten  thousand  dollars  would  have  been  furnished  me. 

On  Wednesday,  the  i3th,  those  of  us  who  had  been  ordered 
into  banishment  were  paraded  and  marched  between  two  files  of 
soldiers  through  some  of  the  principal  streets  in  the  city  to  the 
steamer  which  was  to  bear  us  South.  The  whole  number  of 
persons  on  the  boat  was,  perhaps,  one  hundred  or  more,  includ- 
ing men,  women,  and  children. 


1861-62.  St.  Zoom's  Conference.  81 

Just  before  the  boat  left  the  landing  an  order  came  counter- 
manding the  order  for  my  banishment,  and  directing  that  I  should 
be  sent  to  the  office  of  the  provost-marshal.  This  was  done, 
and  the  other  prisoners  went  South.  At  the  marshal's  office  I 
was  directed  to  report  there  in  person  at  1 1  o'clock  the  next  day, 
and  in  the  meantime  I  might  do  any  thing  not  inconsistent  with 
the  parole  I  had  given  more  than  a  year  before. 

At  the  appointed  hour  next  day  I  reported  myself  at  the  office 
of  the  provost-marshal,  Col.  Dick.  He  expressed  a  desire  for 
a  long  conversation,  and  commenced  in  a  sort  of  apologetic  way 
by  stating  how  much  pleasure  it  gave  him  to  rectify  any  mistake 
he  might  make,  or  undo  any  wrong  he  might  happen  to  commit; 
and,  as  he  had  been  led  into  a  mistake  in  regard  to  my  arrest 
and  order  of  banishment,  he  had  much  pleasure  in  countermand- 
ing the  order,  etc.  The  conversation  was  protracted  and  very 
plain.  The  colonel  was  reminded  that  the  old  ideas  regarding 
civil  rights,  civil  law,  etc.,  were  not  entirely  exploded,  and  that  it 
might  be  well  for  persons  temporarily  in  power  to  remember  that 
orders  for  the  arrest,  imprisonment,  and  banishment  of  persons, 
and  the  confiscation  or  destruction  of  property,  ought  to  be  based 
on  something  else  than  mere  suspicion  or  vague  rumor.  Finally, 
the  conversation  was  ended  by  the  colonel's  suddenly  remem- 
bering that  he  had  some  important  business  just  then,  and  re- 
quested me  to  call  the  next  day,  that  the  interview  might  be 
renewed.  I  did  call  the  next  day,  and  the  next,  and  the  next, 
and  many  succeeding  days,  but  from  the  day  of  that  interview  to 
the  present  never  found  the  colonel  at  leisure.  Soon  after  that 
he  was  relieved  of  his  position  and  duties  as  provost-marshal, 
and  not  a  great  while  afterward,  no  doubt  for  good  and  sufficient 
reasons,  he  left  the  city  and  State. 

The  colonel  gave  no  reason  for  my  arrest,  nor  was  he  asked 
for  any.  Perhaps  he  was  not  aware  that  I  had  learned  his  order 
for  my  arrest  had  been  issued  at  the  instance  of  a  couple  of  igno 
rant  and  bigoted  old  women  connected  with  the  "  Loyal  League," 
and  who  had  been  instigated  by  two  men  who,  for  private  reasons, 
desired  I  should  be  banished.  These  two  men  have  since  devel- 
oped the  very  unenviable  character  which  then  I  knew  they  pos- 
sessed. And  perhaps  he  was  not  aware  that  I  had  learned  his  or- 
der countermanding  the  order  for  banishment  had  been  issued 
on  the  peremptory  command  of  the  general  (Curtis)  then  in  com- 
6 


82  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

mand,  or  that  Gen.  Curtis  had  acted  on  the  representation  of  at 
least  two  of  his  own  colonels,  who  had  assured  him:  (i)  that  the 
order  was  in  itself  wrong,  unjust,  and  an  outrage;  and  (2)  that  to 
let  it  be  carried  out  would  do  great  harm  to  the  "  Union  cause." 
One  of  them  told  the  general  that  the  very  fact  of  my  being  in 
the  South,  under  the  circumstances  then  existing,  would  do  as 
much  harm  to  their  cause  "as  could  be  done  by  a  thousand  armed 
men,"  and  added:  "I  do  not  know  what  he  may  do  in  the  South, 
but  I  do  know  that  if  he  exerts  himself  as  I  know  him  capable  of 
doing  you  might  as  well  send  five  thousand  armed  men  to  help  the 
rebels  as  send  him.  However  peaceablv  disposed  he  may  be  now, 
we  cannot  expect  him  to  continue  so  if  this  outrage  is  carried  out." 

Perhaps  the  colonel  was  not  aware  I  had  learned  all  this,  and 
much  more;  still  he  may  have  thought  of  it  when  he  asked  me 
what  I  would  do  if  sent  South,  and  in  reply  simply  received: 
"  You  may  rely  upon  it  I  will  eat  no  idle  bread! " 

In  all  this  I  allude  only  to  the  arrests  which  were  followed 
by  actual  imprisonment,  saying  nothing  of  an  arrest  made  in 
September,  1861,  not  on  a  charge  of  any  thing  having  been 
.done,  but  on  a  supposition  that  something  might  be  done.  I  was 
quite  ill  at  the  time,  but  taken  in  my  office,  carried  before  the  pro- 
•vost-marshal,  where,  defenseless  and  surrounded  by  armed  men,  I 
was  coarsely  harangued,  villified,  abused,  and  lectured  as  to  my 
editorial  and  ministerial  duties,  during  a  half-hour  or  more,  which 
was  at  length  terminated  by  my  plainly  informing  the  provost- 
marshal  that,  as  I  was  in  their  power,  the  military  could  do  with 
me  as  they  chose;  that  they  had  the  power  and  could  suppress 
my  paper  when  they  chose,  but  until  it  was  suppressed  it  should 
contain  just  what  I  might  think  fit  to  put  into  it — neither  more  nor 
less.  That  provost-marshal  was  one  John  McNeil,  of  Palmyra- 
prisoner  notoriety. 

Nor  have  I  alluded  to  the  fact  that  in  July,  1861,  a  mob  of 
"  Home  Guards,"  so  called,  threatened  to  destroy  my  dwelling 
house  and  church  because  I  had  publicly  baptized  a  child  whose 
parents  chose  to  name  it  Harry  Beauregard,  which  mob  desisted 
from  their  purpose  onlv  a  few  short  hours  before  that  purpose  was 
to  have  been  accomplished,  and  then  not  until  one  of  the  princi- 
pal men  had  been  told  there  were  not  less  than  thirty  or  forty 
men  who  would,  at  the  risk  of  their  lives,  hold  him  personally  re- 
sponsible .for.  all  harm  that  might  befall  me  from  the  mob 


1861-62.  St.  Louis  Conference.  83 

Nor  yet  have  I  alluded  to  the  fact  that  in  July,  1861,  a  com- 
pany of  armed  men,  forty-four  in  number,  wearing  the  uniform 
of  United  States  soldiers,  and  acting  professedly  under  orders 
from  head-quarters,  surrounded  my  house  and  ransacked  it  from 
cellar  to  garret.  What  they  expected  to  find,  or  were  looking  for, 
I  never  asked — I  never  knew.  Nor  to  the  ransacking  of  my  ed- 
itorial office,  the  destruction  of  my  private  papers,  etc.,  which  was 
done  in  April,  1862,  when  I  was  absent;  nor  the  almost  number- 
less unlawful  and  unjust  indignities,  disabilities,  etc.,  that  were 
put  upon  me  during  the  three  years  and  more  that  I  was  a  pris- 
oner. 

In  the  following  statement,  given  by  another,  the 
reader  will  see  that  an  effort  was  made  to  take  pos- 
session of  the  Publishing  House  and  Book  Depos- 
itory owned  by  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  St. 
Louis: 

Certain  parties  in  the  interest  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North) 
managed  to  get  hold  of  many  of  the  heaviest  claims  against  the 
concern,  with  a  view  of  forcing  a  financial  crisis  and  crash.  They 
could  invent  no  plea  or  pretext  that  would  libel  the  property  for 
confiscation,  and  they  undertook  to  break  down  the  concern  by 
forcing  collections.  This  scheme  was  discovered  and  defeated  by 
the  timely  sagacity  of  the  Agent,  Rev.  P.  M.  Pinckard.  He 
called  together  the  Joint  Publishing  Committee,  presented  the" 
facts,  and,  after  mature  deliberation,  they  proposed  to  sell  the 
whole  concern  to  the  Agent,  at  an  appraised  value,  if  he  would 
with  his  own  personal  resources  meet  its  liabilities  and  save  the 
property  from  the  clutches  of  the  enemy.  A  bona  fide  sale  was 
made,  and  the  purchaser  subsequently  filed  a  written  pledge  to 
sell  the  property  to  the  Church  again  upon  an  equitable  valuation, 
should  the  Conferences  ever  be  able  to  buy  it.  The  propertv  was 
saved  by  the  sacrifice  of  his  wife's  personal  property  and  by  the 
most  skillful  management. 

It  was  an  hour  of  the  darkest  and  most  dangerous  trial,  and 
perhaps  not  another  man  in  the  Church  had  the  nerve  to  meet 
the  responsibility  and  brave  the  danger.  The  property  was  saved. 
The  concern  was  run  in  the  interest  of  the  Southern  Methodist 
Church,  and  was  ready  when  the  war  closed  to  republish  the  Ad- 


84  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

vacate,  resupply  the  Church  in  Missouri  with  books,  and  enter 
with  the  Church  upon  the  great  contest  for  religious  liberty  which 
has  been  so  heroically  vindicated  by  the  non-juring  ministry  of 
the  State. 

The  services  thus  rendered  to  the  Church  by  Mr.  Pinckard  in 
her  time  of  greatest  need  will  never  be  fully  appreciated  until  the 
power  of  a  religious  press  shall  be  measured  upon  the  augmenting 
interests  and  vital  issues  of  the  crowded  future,  when  the  Mis- 
sissippi Valley  and  the  great  West  shall  throng  with  a  population 
as  dense  as  that  of  Europe;  while  the  Church  owes  a  debt  of 
gratitude  equal  to  the  sacrifices  made,  the  trials  endured,  and  the 
interests  subserved. 

True  to  his  pledge,  he  preserved  the  property,  declined  often 
the  most  advantageous  offers  made  for  it  by  private  parties,  lest 
it  should  be  alienated  from  the  Church,  and  when  the  time  came 
passed  it  into  the  hands  of  the  "South-western  Book  and  Pub- 
lishing Company,"  authorized  and  organized  by  the  St.  Louis  and 
Missouri  Annual  Conferences,  upon  an  appraised  valuation. 

It  is  perhaps  proper  to  state  that  when  Dr.  McAnally  was  ar- 
rested at  the  depot  of  the  Iron  Mountain  railroad  the  officers 
came  up  immediately  and  took  forcible  possession  of  the  printing 
department  of  the  concern  and  announced  that  they  would  hold 
the  entire  establishment.  The  next  morning  an  order  was  made 
confiscating  the  property,  but  for  some  reason  it  was  not  promul- 
gated. Mr.  Pinckard,  the  Agent,  saw  Col.  Leighton,  provost- 
marshal,  and  asserted  his  right  to  the  job  office  and  Book  Depos- 
itory, affirming  that  they  did  not  belong  to  and  were  not  part  of 
the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate,  and  demanded  that  they  be 
given  up  to  him.  After  a  very  spirited  interview,  much  delay — 
going  back  and  forth  from  the  city  provost-marshal's  office  to  the 
head-quarters  of  the  general  commanding  the  department  and  the 
office  of  the  provost-marshal-general — and  many  sharp  contests 
for  rights,  the  keys  were  finally  given  up  to  Mr.  Pinckard,  and  he 
was  permitted  to  run  the  establishment,  especially  the  job  printing, 
with  all  the  front  doors  closed,  and  then  only  to  finish  the  jobs  on 
hand.  He  was  distinctly  prohibited  from  receiving  any  new  busi- 
ness. When  persons  came  to  purchase  books  they  were  required 
to  bring  a  special  permit  from  the  provost-marshal.  Two  pious 
ladies  from  the  First  Church  desired  to  purchase  books  for  the 
Sunday-school,  but  they  were  required  first  to  go  before  the  pro- 


i86i-62.  *SV.  Louis  Conference.  85 

vost-marshal  and  state  their  desires  before  they  could  get  a  per- 
mit to  supply  the  Sunday-school  children  with  good  books.  Such 
petty  tyranny  and  oppression  characterize  the  cruelties  of  Avar 
and  the  corrupt  hearts  of  mean  men.* 

Rev.  James  M.  Proctor  speaks  of  his  trials  thus: 

I  was  arrested  by  W.  Hall  at  Brady's  Chapel,  on  the  Sabbath, 
July  6,  1862.  Hall,  with  his  company,  reached  the  chapel  be- 
fore me,  and  had  the  "  stars  and  stripes  "  placed  just  above  the 
church  door.  He  said  that  he  had  been  informed  that  I  would 
not  preach  under  the  Union  flag.  After  preaching,  and  just  as 
I  was  coming  out  at  the  door,  near  which  he  had  taken  his  po- 
sition, he  accosted  me  and  said:  "You  are  my  prisoner."  He 
trembled  like  an  aspen  leaf. 

I  said  to  him:  "Why  this  emotion,  sir?  Show  yourself  a 
man,  and  do  your  duty." 

He  replied:  "I  hate  to  arrest  you,  but  I  am  bound  to  do  mv 
duty."  He  said  I  must  go  with  him  to  his  father's  then,  and 
the  following  morning  he  would  take  me  to  head-quarters  at 
Cape  Girardeau. 

I  could  not  go  with  him  that  night,  as  I  had  been  caught  in 
the  rain  that  morning,  and  had  to  borrow  a  dry  suit  on  the  road 
which  I  was  under  obligations  to  return  that  evening. 

After  some  parley  he  granted  me  permission  to  report  at  the 
Cape  in  a  few  days,  which  I  did  promptly,  to  Col.  Ogden,  the 
provost-marshal.  Col.  Ogden  paroled  me,  to  report  at  his  head- 
quarters every  two  or  three  weeks.  On  the  29th  of  September, 
1862,  I  reported  to  him  the  fifth  and  last  time,  when  I  was 
tongue-lashed  at  a  fearful  rate  by  Lieut.-Col.  Peckham,  of  the 
Twenty-ninth  Missouri  Regiment,  and  by  him  sent  to  the  guard- 
house. 

I  asked  this  irate  colonel  "  if  the  front  of  my  offending  was 
not  my  connection  with  the  M.  E.  Church,  South." 

He  replied:  "Yes,  sir;  and  the  man  who  will  belong  to  that 
Church  after  she  has  done  the  way  she  has  ought  to  be  in  pris- 
on during  the  war." 

"It  is  a  hard  sentence  for  such  an  offense,"  I  said. 

He  replied:  "I  can't  help  it,  sir;  all  such  men  as  you  are 
must  be  confined  so  that  they  can  do  no  harm." 

*Dr.  Leftwich's  Book. 


86  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

I  remained  in  the  guard-house  at  the  Cape  until  Thursday, 
October  2,  1862,  when,  in  company  with  thirteen  other  prison- 
ers, three  of  whom  died  in  a  few  weeks,  I  was  sent  to  Gratiot 
Street  Military  Prison,  St.  Louis.  In  this  prison  I  met  several 
very  worthy  ministers  of  different  denominations,  and  also 
Brother  J.  P.  Boogher  and  two  of  his  brothers,  nobler  men  than 
whom  I  have  not  found  anywhere  in  the  world. 

October  20,  1862,  I  was  released  on  parole,  there  being  no 
crime  alleged  against  me.  The  little  man  who  first  arrested  me 
was  a  Northern  Methodist.  He  wrote  out  and  preferred  two 
charges  against  me,  which  were  so  frivolous  that  the  officers  in 
St.  Louis  would  not  investigate  them.  I  furnish  them  as  items 
of  curiosity. 

"  i.  He  [the  said  J.  M.  Proctor]  threatened  to  hang  Mr.  Lin- 
coln. 

"  He  said  that  the  Federal  soldiers  were  horse-thieves." 

After  my  release  from  Gratiot  Street  Prison,  St.  Louis,  I 
went  to  the  town  of  Jackson,  where  I  was  again  arrested  at  the 
special  instigation  of  a  Northern  Methodist  preacher  named 
Liming.  I  continued  to  preach  during  and  after  mv  imprison- 
ment. When  the  notorious  test  oath  was  inaugurated  I  con- 
tinued to  preach,  and  was  indicted  three  times  before  Judge  Al- 
bert Jackson,  Cape  Girardeau  County.  Rev.  D.  H.  Murphy 
and  A.  Munson  were  also  indicted  for  the  same  offense. 

I  never  took  the  test  oath,  nor  any  oath  of  allegiance  during 
the  war.  It  was  plain  to  all  that  the  Northern  Methodists  were 
our  worst  enemies  during  that  long  and  cruel  war. 

REV.  M.  M.  PUGH. 

The  present  writer,  when  in  charge  of  the  Inde- 
pendence Female  College  prior  to  the  Civil  War, 
had  the  pleasure  of  making  the  acquaintance  of 
Mr.  Pugh — not  a  slight  acquaintance,  but  one 
somewhat  long  and  familiar — an  acquaintance  cul- 
tivated into  personal  friendship  and  Christian  love. 

Ever  since  our  first  knowledge  of  him  he  has 
been  the  same  uniform,  active,  zealous,  able,  and 


i86i-62.  St.  Louis  Conference.  87 

successful  embassador  of  Christ — on  the  circuit, 
in  the  station,  and  on  the  district.  He  has  pur- 
sued the  even  tenor  of  his  way  through  the  past 
years,  going  straightforward  in  the  prosecution  of 
his  ministerial  duties,  overcoming  all  difficulties 
and  defying  all  antagonisms.  Such  a  life  of  con- 
secration is  worthy  of  imitation.  Preaching  by 
example  is  more  forcible  than  preaching  by  pre- 
cept; but  when  a  man  does  both,  his  influence  for 
good  is  duplicated. 

He  was  performing  the  duties  of  pastor  and 
preacher  in  the  station  at  Kansas  City  when  he  be- 
came involved  in  the  troubles  of  the  war,  of  which 
he  has  given  the  following  statement: 

I  was  first  arrested  in  Kansas  City  in  the  latter  part  of  1861, 
at  the  instance  of  a  Northern  Methodist,  and  confined  in  Fort 
Union  for  a  short  time,  perhaps  for  not  more  than  an  hour,  then 
released  on  parole  and  granted  city  limits. 

In  the  summer  of  1862  I  was  greatly  annoyed  and  frequent- 
ly threatened  by  a  Northern  Methodist  preacher,  who  had  com- 
mand of  a  company  in  Kansas  City  at  that  time.  To  avoid  the 
relentless  opposition  and  persecution  of  this  man  I  left  home 
two  or  three  weeks.  He  said  his  Church  was  largely  rep- 
resented in  the  Federal  army,  and  to  a  considerable  extent  in- 
fluenced the  United  States  forces,  and  that  Southern  Methodist 
preachers  should  be  hunted  and  punished.  I  mention  this  to 
show  that  we  were  not  persecuted  for  evil-doing,  but  simply 
because  we  were  Southern  Methodists.  This,  in  their  eyes,  was 
a  crime  of  the  greatest  magnitude. 

In  the  fall  of  1862  I  was  ordered  to  pray  for  the  President  of 
the  United  States  by  name,  for  the  United  States  Congress,  and 
for  the  success  of  the  Union  army  so  called.  This  I  refused  to 
do;  and  said,  among  other  things,  that  no  man,  or  class  of  men 
should  dictate  my  prayers. 

In  the  winter  of  1863  I  was  assessed  as  a  Southern  sympa- 


88  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

thizer.  I  refused  to  pay  the  unjust  assessment.  For  this  re- 
fusal I  was  arrested  and  put  in  the  guard-house  in  Kansas  City. 
Here  I  was  kept  in  close  confinement  about  twenty-four  hours, 
when,  in  company  with  nine  others  imprisoned  for  the  same 
offense,  I  was  sent  to  Independence  in  a  greasy  wagon  guard- 
ed by  twenty  men,  and  lodged  in  an  exceedingly  filthy  prison. 
Col.  W.  R.  Renick,  then  in  command,  refused  to  let  us  have  our 
meals  from  the  hotel  or  from  our  friends.  We  were  kept  in 
this  filthy  place  about  twenty -four  hours,  when  we  were  uncon- 
ditionally released  by  order  of  Gov.  Gamble. 

Believing  that  I  could  do  no  good,  opposed  as  we  were,  and 
that  cruel  men  were  seeking  my  life,  I  left  Kansas  City  in  April, 
1863.  Soon  after  I  left  the  Northern  Methodists  took  posses- 
sion of  our  Church. 

In  March,  1866,  I  was  indicted  in  Independence  for  preach- 
ing without  taking  the  oath  of  the  new  Constitution.  I  was  ar- 
rested by  the  deputy  sheriff,  a  man  who  before  the  war  would 
not  have  been  thought  of  in  connection  with  that  office.  I  gave 
bond  for  my  appearance  at  the  next  term  of  court. 

In  the  fall  I  appeared  in  court,  when  the  case  was  continued. 
The  next  spring,  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  having  de- 
cided the  so-called  "test  oath"  unconstitutional,  my  case  was 
dismissed. 

How  willful,  how  malicious,  and  how  unpro- 
voked was  the  vexatious  persecution  of  Mr. 
Pugh.  He  was  cautious  and  prudent,  gave  of- 
fense to  no  one,  studiously  abstained  from  the 
strife  and  every  thing  partisan  and  political.  But 
these  things  were  no  protection  in  those  times. 
The  Northern  Methodist  preachers  who  were  his 
persecutors  were  no  doubt  enraged  against  him 
because  he  had  left  the  M.  E.  Church  (North) 
and  united  with  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  some 
years  prior  to  the  war.  His  having  deserted  their 
Church  would  have  a  tendency  to  exasperate  their 
feelings  and  make  them  more  determined  to  give 


1861-62.  iSy.  Louis  Conference.  89 

him  all  the  trouble  they  could,  and  had  he  not  left 
Kansas  City  he  no  doubt  would  have  fallen  a  vic- 
tim to  their  wrath. 

REV.  GREEN  WOODS. 

The  fate  of  the  man  whose  name  appears  just 
above  is  sad  beyond  description.  It  is  enough  to 
chill  the  reader's  heart  and  make  the  blood  congeal 
in  his  veins  while  he  reads  it.  Why  did  they  seek 
the  destruction  of  the  purest  and  best  men  in  the 
country — men  distinguished  for  their  moral  recti- 
tude and  Christian  character;  men  whose  hearts 
were  pure,  whose  lives  were  righteous,  whose  influ- 
ence was  for  good  and  against  evil;  men  who  were 
the  salt  of  the  earth,  preserving  it  from  moral  pu- 
trefaction and  death ;  men  who  were  the  religious 
and  spiritual  light  of  the  world,  without  whose  light 
darkness  would  cover  the  earth  and  gross  darkness 
the  people;  unselfish  men,  who  lived  for  God  and 
humanity,  who  like  their  Lord  went  about  doing 
good,  preaching  the  gospel  of  salvation  to  lost  sin- 
ners, transforming  their  character  from  evil  to 
good,  from  wickedness  to  righteousness,  from  ha- 
tred to  love,  from  vice  to  virtue,  from  falsehood 
to  truth,  from  corruption  to  holiness  —  in  short, 
from  bad  men  to  good  men,  who  love  God  su- 
premely and  their  neighbors  as  themselves?  In 
this  way  they  promoted  the  highest  and  best  inter- 
ests of  humanity,  and  were  benefactors  of  their 
race.  Mr.  Woods  belonged  to  the  class  of  Chris- 
tian philanthropists  who  live  for  the  good  of  their 


90  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

fellow-men.  He  was  presiding  elder  of  the  Green- 
ville District,  St.  Louis  Conference.  A  description 
of  his  suffering  and  death  is  given  by  his  eldest 
daughter,  and  will  no  doubt  be  read  with  intense 
interest: 

In  the  spring  of  1862  the  excitement  in  the  country  became 
so  intense  that  my  father  could  no  longer  travel  his  district;  so 
he  thought  he  would  stay  at  home,  and  try  to  make  enough  to 
support  his  family  on  his  farm.  As  the  people  in  the  neighbor- 
hood desired  him  to  preach  to  them,  he  made  an  appointment  to 
preach  about  three  miles  from  home  the  second  Sunday  in  Mav. 
He  filled  this  appointment,  and  announced  another  at  the  same 
place  for  the  second  Sunday  in  June.  Before  that  time  arrived 
he  was  advised  by  some  of  his  friends  not  to  go  to  his  appoint- 
ment, as  they  believed  he  would  be  taken  prisoner,  and  perhaps 
killed,  that  day  by  the  soldiers  if  he  attempted  to  preach.  But 
he  told  them  that  he  would  go  and  preach,  and  if  the  soldiers 
wished  to  arrest  him  they  could  do  so;  that  if  necessary  he 
could  go  to  jail.  He  said  he  did  not  believe  they  would  kill  him, 
as  he  had  not  done  any  thing  to  be  killed  for. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Silas  Hamby,  a  member  of  the  Meth- 
odist Church  (North),  had  said  some  time  before  that  no  South- 
ern Methodist  preacher  should  preach  at  Mount  Pleasant  again. 
But  my  father  thought  it  was  an  idle  threat,  as  he  had  heard  of 
no  preacher  being  killed  because  he  was  a  preacher. 

When  Sunday  morning  came,  father  and  my  sister,  younger 
than  myself,  went  to  Mount  Pleasant,  and  he  preached  to  a 
small  congregation,  the  people  being  afraid  to  turn  out  on  ac- 
count of  the  soldiers,  and  returned  home  the  same  evening  un- 
molested. The  next  morning  he  took  my  sister  (just  thirteen 
years  of  age)  and  two  little  boys  that  he  had  hired,  and  went  out 
to  a  field  one  mile  from  home,  to  finish  planting  corn.  While 
they  were  at  work  the  mother  of  the  boys  came  by  the  field,  on 
her  wav  to  our  house.  She  saw  that  they  were  nearlv  done,  so 
she  thought  she  would  wait  until  they  finished,  and  come  along 
with  them.  By  this  means  there  was  one  grown  person  present 
to  witness  his  arrest.  I  think  that  it  was  about  the  middle  of 
the  forenoon  of  that  Monday,  June  9,  1862,  when  sixteen  men, 


iS6i-62.  <SV.  Louis  Conference.  91 

armed  and  uniformed  as  Federal  soldiers,  came  to  our  house 
and  surrounded  it.  They  inquired  for  father.  Mother  told 
them  that  he  was  not  at  home,  but  out  in  the  field.  (Father  told 
her  if  they  came  and  called  for  him  to  tell  them  where  he  was.) 
They  made  a  general  search,  and  then  huddled  up  out  in  the 
yard  and  held  a  council  for  a  few  minutes.  Five  of  them  were 
sent  to  the  field,  and  while  they  were  gone  those  at  the  house 
were  stealing  every  thing  they  could  get  their  hands  on  that  be- 
longed to  father,  leaving  very  few  things  behind. 

When  the  five  soldiers  got  to  the  field  father  was  not  quite 
done  planting.  They  rode  up  and  asked  if  his  name  was  Green 
Woods.  He  told  them  it  was.  They  told  him  that  he  was  the 
man  they  were  after,  and  ordered  him  to  alight  over  the  fence. 
He  asked  them  if  they  could  not  wait  until  he  finished  planting, 
as  he  had  then  but  a  few  short  rows;  but  they  told  him  with  an 
oath  that  they  were  in  a  hurry,  and  kept  hurrying  him  while  he 
was  getting  his  horse  ready  to  start.  When  they  started  from 
the  field  my  sister  asked  them  what  they  intended  to  do  with  fa- 
ther. They  told  her  with  an  oath  that  it  was  uncertain  where 
he  would  get  to  before  he  came  back.  They  brought  him  to  the 
house,  and  allowed  him  to  eat  his  dinner;  but  when  he  went  to 
dress  himself  he  could  not  find  a  change  of  clothes,  as  the  sol- 
diers had  taken  all  that  he  had  and  would  not  even  give  him  his 
pants  and  hat.  They  took  him  about  three  miles  from  home,  to 
a  man's  house  by  the  name  of  Jones,  and  pretended  to  get  evi- 
dence against  him.  They  then  took  him  about  three  miles  from 
home,  in  another  direction,  to  where  a  man  lived  named  Peter 
Skiles,  who  kept  a  blacksmith  shop.  They  stopped  and  staid 
there  awhile,  and  searched  the  house.  Skiles  was  a  Southern 
man.  They  then  took  father  about  half  a  mile  and  killed  him, 
and  left  him  lying  out  in  the  woods  away  from  the  road,  no  one 
knew  where  except  those  who  placed  him  there.  Two  guns 
were  heard  after  the  soldiers  left  Skiles's. 

This  was  done  on  Monday,  and  his  body  was  not  found  till 
the  next  Monday.  We  did  not  know  that  he  was  killed  until 
his  bodv  was  found.  When  found  he  was  lying  on  his  back, 
with  his  overcoat  spread  on  the  ground  under  him.  One  arm 
was  stretched  out  one  way,  and  the  other  stretched  out  the  other 
wav;  his  hat  drawn  over  his  face;  his  coat  and  vest  and  left 
glove  lying  on  the  ground  near  him  ;  his  right  glove  on;  his  left 


92  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1861-62. 

shirt-sleeve  torn  off,  and  his  left  hand  off  and  gone.  He  seemed 
to  have  been  dragged  some  two  or  three  hundred  yards  before 
he  was  shot,  as  there  was  but  little  blood  along  the  trail,  and 
was  found,  as  above  described,  near  a  large  tree  and  among  some 
low  bushes. 

We  have  heard  several  times  that  the  Northern  Methodist 
presiding  elder,  by  the  name  of  Ing,  sent  the  men  to  kill  my  fa- 
ther. All  the  evidence  we  have  that  Ing  sent  the  men  is  that 
he  was  their  commander  at  the  time ;  and  it  has  been  told  by 
those  who  said  they  saw  it  that  father's  hand  was  carried  to  Ing 
as  proof  that  they  had  killed  him ;  and  that  he  still  had  it  in  his 
possession  a  year  or  two  ago. 

[Signed]     JOSEPHINE  M.  A.  M.  WOODS,  Eldest  Daughter; 
E.  A.  WOODS,  Wife;  and 

MARY  LOUISA  WOODS,    Daughter  of  Rev.  Green 
Woods. 


CHAPTER  V. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

No  Missouri  or  St.  Louis  Conference  Session  This  Year — The 
M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  a  State  of  Consternation  and  Disor- 
ganization— Loyal  State  and  Loyal  Church — United  and  Con- 
centrated Efforts  at  the  Annihilation  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South — "You  Are  the  Man  We  Are  After" — Seizure  of  the 
Houses  of  Worship  Belonging  to  Our  Church — Her  Prop- 
erty, for  Which  She  Paid  Her  Money,  and  in  Which  She 
Had  the  Sole  Right  and  Title  for  Many  Years,  Contested  by 
the  M.  E.  Church — Church  in  Kansas  City  Taken  Possession 
of  by  M.  E.  Church — Abuse  of  Southern  Methodists  for  not 
Uniting  with  Them — Some  True  Members  Who  Saved  the 
Church — Murder  of  Rev.  T.  Glanville  and  His  Son — Seizure 
of  the  Church  at  Independence — Independence  Female  Col- 
lege— Large  and  Costly  House  of  Worship — Good  Parsonage 
—Rev.  H.  N.  Watts— Seizure  of  the  Church  at  Springfield- 
Report  of  Committee— Rev.  J.  M.  Breeding. 

*"T^HERE  are  no  published  minutes  of  the  Mis- 
••-  souri  and  St.  Louis  Conferences  this  year, 
from  the  simple  fact  they  did  not  hold  their  usual 
annual  sessions.  This  they  could  not  do  in  conse- 
quence of  the  cruel  and  fierce  persecution  through 
which  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  was  passing  at 
that  time.  The  Church  was  thrown  into  the  great- 
est confusion  and  disorganization.  Both  shepherds 
and  sheep  were  separated  and  scattered  in  every 
direction — hundreds,  and  some  of  them  thousands 
of  miles  from  their  State  and  from  their  homes  and 
families.  A  wide-spread  scene  of  suffering  and 
sorrow,  dreadful  to  contemplate ! 

(93) 


94  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

It  is  generally  admitted  as  an  historic  fact  that 
no  class  of  men  suffered  during  the  war  like  the 
ministers  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  There  are 
two  reasons  which  make  this  a  very  singular  fact: 
Missouri  did  not  secede;  she  was  not  a  secession 
State,  and  the  ministers  in  Missouri,  the  history  of 
whose  persecution  is  now  being  written,  had  not 
seceded  and  did  not  secede.  They  were  loyal  citi- 
zens in  a  loyal  State.  No  better  patriots,  no  truer 
friends  to  the  Constitution  and  Government  of  our 
country  ever  lived.  Had  they  not  the  right,  there- 
fore, to  expect  and  claim  the  protection  of  that 
government  they  loved  so  dearly,  and  whose  laws 
they  had  never  violated?  Yet,  as  we  see  above, 
they  were  not  allowed  to  hold  their  Annual  Con- 
ference to  transact  the  religious  business  of  the 
Church. 

Judging  by  the  extensiveness  and  destructiveness 
with  which  was  executed  the  well-arranged  sys- 
tem of  persecution,  one  would  conclude  that  the 
object  was  the  annihilation  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South. 

Their  places  must  be  vacated  for  others  who  ex- 
pected to  be  their  successors.  But  for  the  inter- 
position of  Divine  Providence,  it  appears,  in  view 
of  all  the  facts,  that  they  would  have  accomplished 
their  purpose.  No  doubt  they  themselves  thought 
victory  was  certain  and  that  possession  was  an  as- 
sured fact.  By  taking  an  active  part  in  the  inter- 
necine war,  by  manifesting  an  active  zeal  for  the 
safety  of  the  country,  and  by  wearing  Federal  uni- 


1862-63.  St.  Louis  Conference.  95 

form  and  insignia  of  military  authority,  they  in- 
gratiated themselves  with  the  war  department  of 
the  government.  Thus  gaining  the  confidence  of 
the  Federal  officials  and  soldiers,  they  had  no 
difficulty  in  prejudicing  their  minds  and  making 
them  believe  that  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  was 
the  cause  of  all  their  trouble,  thereby  securing 
co-operation  in  the  overthrow  and  destruction 
of  said  Church.  Indeed,  did  not  some  of  their 
preachers  vacate  their  pulpits  and  seek  position  and 
office  in  the  Federal  army,  that  they  might  more 
effectually  accomplish  the  aforesaid  purpose? 
With  the  sanction  of  the  Federal  authorities  and 
with  the  forces  of  the  Federal  army,  did  they  not 
make  a  direct  raid  upon  the  M.  E.  Church,  South 
— upon  an  unarmed,  defenseless,  peaceable,  loyal 
Church  ?  Was  it  not  their  first  object  to  get  rid  of 
the  ministry  of  that  Church,  knowing  that  that 
would  be  a  grand  step  toward  her  ruin? 

While  in  eager  pursuit  of  her  preachers  all  over 
the  State,  whenever  they  met  a  person  they  sup- 
posed belonged  to  that  class  they  would  ask  him: 
"Who  are  you?"  or  "Are  you  a  Southern  Meth- 
odist preacher?  "  Should  he  answer  in  the  affirm- 
ative, they  replied:  "Well,  you  are  the  man  we 
are  after."  They  did  not  ask  him :  "Are  you  loyal? 
are  you  a  peaceful  and  law-abiding  citizen?  Do 
you  subscribe  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States?  and  are  you  a  supporter  of  our  civil  gov- 
ernment ? ' '  He  might  easily  have  answered  all  the 
above  questions  in  the  affirmative;  and  if  he  were 


96  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

a  Southern  Methodist  preacher,  "he  is  the  man 
they  are  after."  The  one  unpardonable  crime  of 
being  born  on  the  south  side  of  the  Mason  and 
Dixon  line  and  being  a  Methodist  preacher  was 
enough  to  bring  him  under  condemnation  and  sub- 
ject him  to  the  sorest  persecution  of  confiscation, 
suffering,  and  death. 

Nor  were  they  satisfied  with  the  persecution  and 
discomfiture  of  her  ministers ;  but  did  they  not  de- 
vise and  put  into  practical  operation  a  scheme  of 
Church  seizure  by  which  they  expected  to  come 
into  the  possession  of  all  the  property  belonging  to 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South? 

After  the  property  question  between  the  two 
great  branches  of  Methodism  in  the  United  States 
had  been  thoroughly  litigated  and  settled  by  the 
highest  judicature  of  the  country,  and  after  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  had  enjoyed  the  peaceable  and 
indisputable  possession  of  her  property  for  many 
years,  did  not  these  same  persons  conceive  the  idea 
and  project  a  plan  to  contest  the  claims  and  dis- 
pute the  titles  of  the  original  owners  of  that  proper- 
ty, for  every  cent  of  which  they  had  paid  their  own 
money?  If  they  had  invested  any  amount  of 
money  in  said  property,  however  small,  or  if  they 
had  had  the  merest  shadow  of  a  claim,  upon  the 
basis  of  justice  and  equity,  do  you  suppose  they 
would  have  remained  silent  all  those  years?  Did 
they  not  know  just  as  well  as  we  did  that  they  had 
no  just  claim,  no  equitable  right  to  said  property? 
Had  they  not  already  contested  the  title  of  the 


1862-63-  »$V-  Louis  Conference.  97 

property  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  on  several 
previous  occasions,  not  only  in  violation  of  the 
"Plan  of  Separation"  agreed  to  by  both  sides, 
and  adopted  by  the  General  Conference  of  1844, 
but  also  in  violation  of  every  principle  of  justice 
and  equity?  Did  they  not  contest  this  right  not 
only  upon  a  large  scale  involving  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  dollars,  but  also  on  a  small  scale  in- 
volving houses  of  worship  along  the  border  line 
between  the  two  Churches? 

The  reader  will  recollect  that  according  to  the 
*'Plan  of  Separation"  the  Methodist  Societies 
living  on  the  border  line  were  allowed  to  choose 
to  which  Church  they  would  attach  themselves. 
In  deciding  the  question  the  Society  would  belong 
to  the  Church,  North  or  South,  which  received 
the  majority  of  votes.  This  was  the  plan  to  which 
both  parties  assented — a  very  correct  way  in  which 
to  adjust  the  difficulty.  And  yet  it  seems  that  the 
M.  E.  Church  was  disposed  to  ignore  the  agree- 
ment. Did  they  not  dispute  the  right  of  property 
in  several  places  where  the  majority  voted  to  ad- 
here to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South?  This  of  course 
was  prior  to  the  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States  in  favor  of  the  Church,  South, 
One  of  the  most  notable  instances  was  the  Church 
in  Maysville,  Ky.  The  Methodist  Society  there 
numbered  two  hundred  and  fifty-six.  When  the 
question  came  up  ninety-seven  cast  their  votes  to 
adhere  North,  while  one  hundred  and  fifty-nine 
adhered  South.  Notwithstanding  this  fact,  the  M. 
7 


98  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

E.  Church  sent  their  adherents  a  preacher  and  en- 
tered suit  for  the  Church  property.  If  the  reader  is 
at  all  acquainted  with  Church  history,  he  already 
knows  the  decision  in  the  case.  It  was  taken  to 
the  State  Court  of  Appeals.  Chief-justice  Mar- 
shall, an  eminent  jurist  and  noted  for  his  probity, 
decided  that  the  property  justly  and  rightfully  be- 
longed to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  In  making 
known  his  decision,  among  other  things,  he  said: 
"There  are  now  two  distinct  Churches  in  the 
place  of  the  M.  E.  Church  of  the  United  States — 
the  one  the  M.  E.  Church,  North,  the  other  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South — these  two  differing  from 
the  original  and  from  each  other  only  in  locality 
and  in  extent;  each  possessing  in  its  locality  the 
entire  jurisdiction  of  the  original  Church."  On 
this  same  basis  of  justice  and  equity  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States  settled  this  whole  ques- 
tion of  Church  property.  And  it  was  thought  that 
this  matter  never  would  be  agitated  again,  that  it 
had  been  disposed  of  finally  and  forever.  But  all 
the  courts  in  the  United  States,  from  the  lowest  to 
the  highest,  cannot  change  the  ambitious  and 
covetous  disposition  of  the  human  heart,  whether 
in  individuals  or  Churches.  The  large  fish  natu- 
rally loves  to  swallow  the  small  one,  and  realizes  its 
own  augmentation  thereby,  while  the  little  fish 
loses  its  identity  altogether;  but  in  this  case  the 
little  fish  has  never  been  willing  to  be  swallowed, 
until  it  has  grown  into  such  large  dimensions  that 
deglutition  would  be  a  very  difficult  operation. 


1862-63.  St-  -Louts  Conference.  99 

When  the  war  broke  out  did  not  the  identical 
ambitious  spirit  manifest  itself  in  the  same  Church, 
which  showed  that  prior  to  the  war  it  was  latent 
and  lurking  in  their  hearts,  anxiously  waiting  for  a 
suitable  time  to  accomplish  its  selfish  designs?  and 
was  not  the  Civil  War  hailed  as  a  favorable  oppor- 
tunity? They  knew  that  what  could  not  be  gained 
by  courts  of  justice  and  equity  might  be  accom- 
plished by  military  power.  For  this  purpose  did 
they  not,  as  already  stated,  form  an  alliance  with 
the  military  department  of  the  government?  Did 
they  not  wear  Federal  uniforms,  become  captains 
and  colonels,  and  fill  many  important  offices  in 
the  army?  All  this  gave  them  positions  of  influ- 
ence and  power  among  those  who  were  engaged 
in  quelling  what  they  called  the  rebellion.  Is  it 
not  known  how  they  used  their  influence  and  pow- 
er with  intent  to  annihilate  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South?  With  their  armed  forces  did  they  not 
pounce  upon  her  as  the  hungry  vulture  pounces 
upon  its  devoted  prey,  proclaiming,  as  published 
in  the  papers,  that  "the  Southern  Methodist 
Church  was  the  cause  of  the  rebellion?"  Hence 
destroy  her,  and  the  rebellion  will  soon  disappear. 
A  falser  charge  could  not  have  been  made ;  yet,  be- 
lieved, it  had  all  the  force  of  truth.  Was  not  that 
the  impression  throughout  the  entire  Federal 
army?  and  did  they  not  prove  it  by  their  conduct  of 
killing  our  preachers  without  trial,  judge,  or  jury, 
giving  them  no  opportunity  of  exonerating  them- 
selves from  false  accusations — prejudged,  pre- 


ioo  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

condemned,  indicted,  imprisoned,  banished,  killed, 
without  allowing  them  to  say  one  word  ?  Was  not 
the  order  given,  on  some  occasions,  when  they 
knew  he  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher,  to 
"shoot  him  on  sight?"  and  was  it  not  done  in 
some  instances?  Read  this  history,  and  you  will 
ascertain  for  yourself. 

Let  it  be  understood  that  we  bear  no  ill-will  to- 
ward the  M.  E.  Church.  Like  Saul  of  Tarsus, 
that  conscientious  man  who  thought  he  was  doing 
God  service  in  persecuting  the  infant  Church  of 
Christ  unto  strange  cities  and  to  death,  so  the  M. 
E.  Church  was  perhaps  following  the  conviction  of 
what  she  conceived  to  be  her  duty;  but  in  view  of 
existing  facts  and  developments  since  the  war  will 
she  not  discover  that  she  made  a  great  mistake, 
though  she  then  thought  that  she  was  doing  the 
will  of  God  in  persecuting  his  people  even  unto 
strange  cities  and  to  death?  And  will  she  not,  like 
Paul,  repent  of  her  wrong-doings?  Then  true  fra- 
ternization would  be  established  upon  the  honora- 
ble basis  of  justice  and  righteousness. 

During  this  Conference  year  there  appears  to 
have  been  a  general  understanding  among  them  to 
take  possession  of  the  property  in  Missouri  belong- 
ing to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  There  was  a 
movement  in  that  direction  in  all  parts  of  the  State 
— to  seize,  to  hold,  to  possess,  to  use  her  houses 
of  worship,  her  parsonages,  her  seminaries,  and 
her  colleges. 

The  following  interesting  account  is  given  of 


1862-63-      •         ^-  Louis  Conference.  101 

THE  CHURCH  IN  KANSAS  CITY. 

In  the  fall  of  1862  Rev.  M.  M.  Pugh,  then  stationed  at  Kan- 
sas City,  was  forced  by  persecution  to  abandon  his  Church  and 
charge,  and  flee  for  protection  to  a  neighboring  military  post. 
Mr.  Pugh  was  watched  by  enemies  and  warned  by  friends.  The 
threat,  oft  repeated,  of  arrest  and  imprisonment  did  not  deter 
him ;  but  to  know  that  his  steps  were  dogged,  that  detectives 
were  on  his  track,  that  his  life  was  threatened,  and  to  be  told  by 
military  officers  that  they  could  not  be  responsible  for  his  life 
any  night,  and  to  be  advised  that  there  were  liers-in-wait  to  as- 
sassinate him,  put  his  life  in  too  great  a  peril  to  remain  with  his 
people. 

As  soon  as  his  absence  was  known  the  Northern  Methodists 
took  possession  of  the  Church,  and  held  it  under  military  pro- 
tection. They  organized  a  Society,  composed  of  a  few  North- 
ern fanatics  and  a  few  renegade  and  weak-kneed  Southern 
Methodists.  They  pronounced  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  dead, 
and  beyond  the  hope  of  resurrection ;  tried  to  get  possession  of 
the  Church  records,  and  to  absorb  all  the  former  Society  of  South- 
ern Methodist  members,  nolens  volens.  When  they  found  that 
but  few  would  accept  the  transfer  they  pronounced  the  rest  dis- 
loyal, and  threatened  them  with  confiscation.  "But  none  of 
these  things  moved  them,"  and  they  maintained  their  fidelity  to 
the  Church  of  their  choice,  notwithstanding  all  the  abuse  and 
slander  and  threatenings  and  slaughter  that  these  religious  loy- 
alists could  bring  to  bear  upon  them. 

After  the  occupancy  of  the  church  for  some  months,  they  be- 
came conscious  of  wrong-doing  and  of  guilt,  and  in  shame  and 
humiliation  turned  the  property  over  to  the  rightful  owners. 
They  found  that  m  litary  orders  did  not  confer  letters  of  admin- 
istration. If  the  Church,  South,  were  dead  and  buried,  what 
right  had  they  more  than  others  to  administer  on  the  estate?* 

In  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of  June  13, 
1866,  the  subject  is  spoken  of  by  the  writer  in  the 
following  language. 

After  Brother  Pugh  was  run  off  the  church  was  occupied  for 
"•''Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


IO2  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

some  time  by  the  Northern  Methodists,  who  assumed  that  the 
Church  property  was  theirs,  to  have  and  to  hold,  with  all  the 
appurtenances  thereto  belonging  to  them  and  to  their  suc- 
cessors forever.  They  abused  Southern  Methodists  roundly, 
threatened  them  much,  and  with  all  the  prestige  of  power  as- 
saulted the  gates  of  our  Zion  until  they  became  so  offensive  that 
all  true  friends  of  our  Church  and  of  the  government  gave  them 
a  wide  berth  and  left  them  alone  in  their  shame. 

Some  who  in  name  only  had  been  with  us  went  out  from  us, 
to  take  shelter  under  their  political  banner,  prove  their  loyalty 
to  the  government,  and,  as  they  were  told,  save  their  property 
and  their  lives,  and  be  fitted,  as  it  proved,  to  enjoy  the  product 
of  others'  labor  and  the  spoils  of  pious  conquest. 

The  faithful  of  our  Church  pursued  the  even  tenor  of  their 
way,  and  when  refused  their  own  house  of  worship  met  in  pri- 
vate houses  to  worship;  and  when  denied  this  means  of  grace 
they  kept  up  the  sewing  circle  and  mite  society,  and  in  this  way 
the  "faithful  women  not  a  few"  preserved  an  organization,  a 
name,  and  a  life.  While  their  harps  were  upon  the  willows  they 
often  sat  down  together  and  wept  when  they  remembered 
their  Zion,  once  so  beautiful  for  situation,  the  joy  of  our  hearts. 
They  suffered  all  that  the  betrayal  of  Judas  and  the  denial  of  Pe- 
ter could  inflict  upon  them ;  yet,  believing  truth  and  right, 
though  nailed  to  the  cross  and  buried  in  the  tomb,  would,  like 
the  divine  Redeemer,  rise  again,  leading  captivity  captive  and 
conferring  gifts  upon  men,  they  waited  patiently  and  hopefully 
till  their  change  should  come.  And  it  did  come,  and  that  by  a 
way  they  knew  not.  They  were,  like  their  Lord,  "  despised  and 
rejected  of  men,"  yet  their  faith  failed  not.  They  had  confi- 
dence in  the  Church  and  the  pledges  of  her  risen  Head.  Their 
faith  grew  sublime  as  the  darkness  increased  and  the  troubles 
multiplied  about  them.  They  heard  in  the  thick  darkness  the 
promise,  "  The  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  the 
Church;"  and,  bowing  to  the  storm,  they  sheltered  themselves 
in  the  clefts  of  the  everlasting  Rock  "  until  these  calamities  be 
overpassed." 

There  were  some  men  in  authority  who  loved  the  right  and 
hated  the  wrong.  There  were  also  "good  men  and  true"  in 
the  Church,  whose  loyalty  to  the  government  was  only  equaled 
by  their  fidelity  to  the  Church ;  and  neither  could  be  shaken  by 


1862-63-  *SV-  Louis.  Conference.  103 

all  the  libels  and  slanders  of  ecclesiastical  hirelings.  When  such 
men  have  the  adjustment  of  the  rights  of  property,  truth  and 
righteousness  will  prevail,  and  justice  will  be  reached  in  the 
end.  To  such  are  we  indebted  for  our  Church  property  in  Kan- 
sas City. 

Whenever  persons  think  and  act  under  the  dicta- 
tion and  impulsion  of  an  enlightened  conscience — a 
Bible-taught  conscience — you  may  be  sure  they  will 
think  and  act  right.  They  adhere  unswervingly 
to  the  principles  of  truth  and  righteousness,  of 
justice  and  equity,  and  no  motive,  however  strong, 
could  induce  them  to  violate  any  one  of  these  di- 
vine principles.  It  is  true  they  are  fallible,  and 
may  do  wrong  through  ignorance  or  mistake ;  but 
their  intention  is  right,  their  motive  is  pure.  It 
seems  to  this  writer  that  the  case  of  the  Southern 
Methodist  Church  in  Kansas  City  fell  into  the 
hands  of  just  such  persons.  Ascertaining  the 
facts  in  the  case — who  purchased  the  property,  who 
paid  their  money  for  it,  who  met  the  annual  ex- 
penses of  keeping  it  in  good  repair  for  lo !  these 
many  years  past — with  these  facts  before  them, 
they  hesitated  not  to  turn  the  property  over  into 
the  possession  of  those  to  whom  it  rightfully  be- 
longed. If  other  Church  property  seized  by  the 
M.  E.  Church  in  other  places  in  this  State  had 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  such  good  men  as  were  at 
Kansas  City,  how  much  of  anxiety  and  trouble  and 
expense  it  would  have  saved  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South!  While  some  of  them  were  seizing  the 
Church  property  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in 
Missouri,  others,  with  swords  and  bayonets,  with 


104  Methodism  iji  Missouri.  1862-63. 

pistols  and  guns,  were  eagerly  pursuing  and  killing 
her  ministers.  We  shall  not  stop  with  the  mere 
mention  of  such  startling  facts,  but  will  give  ex- 
amples, as  they  were  quite  numerous  during  the 
Civil  War. 

REV.  THOMAS  GLANVILLE  AND  SON. 

This  useful  minister  of  the  gospel  and  true  serv- 
ant of  God  might  have  used  the  language  that  was 
once  applied  to  Christ:  "  The  zeal  of  thine  house 
hath  eaten  me  up."  Though  his  life  was  in  immi- 
nent danger,  he  could  not  refrain  from  preaching 
the  glorious  gospel  of  salvation.  He  was  told  of 
his  perilous  condition,  and  he  knew  that  his  life 
had  been  threatened ;  but  there  were  destitute  por- 
tions of  the  country  in  which  sinners  were  perish- 
ing for  the  bread  of  life,  and  souls  were  being  lost 
because  the  word  of  God  was  not  preached  to 
them.  The  fire  seemed  to  be  shut  up  in  his  bones, 
and  he  felt  that  he  must  preach  though  it  might 
cost  him  his  life.  The  following  notice  of  his 
tragical  end  was  furnished  by  a  personal  friend: 

It  was  the  privilege  of  the  writer  to  be  intimately  acquainted 
with  the  subjects  of  this  sketch  for  more  than  a  score  of  years. 
Without  reference  to  official  documents,  or  private  papers,  I 
write  mostly  from  memory,  hoping  thereby  to  preserve  the 
precious  memory  of  two  worthy  men. 

Rev.  Thomas  Glanville  was  born  in  England  about  iSn 
A.D.,  and  came  to  America  when  about  sixteen  rears  of  age. 
He  was  converted  to  God  in  early  life,  and  after  much  mental 
agony  yielded  to  the  conviction  that  it  was  his  duty  to  preach. 

Soon  after  he  began  to  preach  he  joined  the  St.  Louis  Con- 
ference, M.  E.  Church,  South,  and  traveled  several  years.  But 


1862-63.  St.  Louis  Conference.  105 

family  afflictions  came  upon  him — his  wife  died  and  left  him 
three  children.  He  married  again,  and  soon  after  located. 

Time  rolled  on,  and  ever  found  him  diligent  in  business, 
fervent  in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord,  and  laboring  efficiently  as  a 
local  preacher.  In  the  fall  of  1852  a  camp-meeting  was  held  in 
his  neighborhood  by  the  lamented  Leeper,  Anthony,  and  Bond. 
Brother  Glanville's  three  children  were  at  the  altar  as  peni- 
tents. All  the  tender  sympathies  of  a  father's  heart  went  out 
after  them.  How  pointed  his  instructions!  and  O  how  fer- 
vent his  prayers!  He  told- the  writer  that  he  had  made  a  vow 
that  if  the  Lord  would  accept  his  three  children  at  that  meet- 
ing he  would  rejoin  the  Conference  and  travel  and  preach  as 
long  as  his  way  seemed  open.  The  Lord  did  mercifully  accept 
his  three  children ;  and,  true  to  his  vow,  he  rejoined  the  Con- 
ference and  remained  in  it  till  the  day  of  his  death. 

When  the  late  Civil  War  commenced,  and  the  flock  in  South- 
west Missouri  was  left  for  the  most  part  without  a  shepherd,  he 
and  the  local  preachers  of  his  neighborhood  met  in  council  and 
went  out  "two  and  two"  and  held  meetings  in  the  most  desti- 
tute neighborhoods.  After  a  time  he  was  ordered  by  a  militia 
captain  to  discontinue  his  meetings.  This  grieved  him  much, 
but'he  yielded  and  remained  silent  for  almost  a  year. 

In  February,  1863,  a  meeting  was  appointed  in  one  of  those 
destitute  neighborhoods,  which  he  attended.  The  "  fire  was 
shut  up  in  his  bones,"  and  in  company  with  a  friend  he  waited 
on  the  captain  then  in  command  in  that  vicinity,  and  requested 
permission  to  resume  his  duties  as  a  minister.  To  his  great  joy, 
he  received  a  written  permission,  and  the  next  night  he  preached 
a  sermon  full  of  jov  and  comfort. 

In  July  or  August  following  three  men  called  at  his  gate  one 
dark  night  and  ordered  him  to  leave  the  country  on  pain  of 
death.  A  few  days  after  he  remarked  to  the  writer  that  he 
would  like  to  live  to  see  peace  restored  to  the  country,  and  he 
hoped  he  would,  and  then  added:  "Those  fellows  may  kill  me, 
but  I  think  not.  Of  one  thing  I  am  certain:  they  can't  harm 
me;  death  has  no  terrors  for  me,  and  has  not  had  for  fifteen 
years." 

He  was  a  bold  and  fearless  man.  Conscious  innocence  knows 
no  fear;  but  through  the  entreaties  of  his  friends  he  left  home 
for  a  month  or  more ;  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  he  made  up 


106  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

his  mind  to  return,  and  did  so,  saying  that  he  would  risk  the 
consequences. 

He  published  an  appointment  for  preaching,  and  a  few  hours 
before  the  time  came  two  militia  soldiers  waited  on  him  and 
informed  him  that  he  would  not  be  permitted  to  hold  the  serv- 
ice. He  remained  at  home  that  Sabbath,  and  remarked  to  a 
neighbor:  "Those  fellows  will  kill  me,  I  believe;  but  they  shall 
never  have  it  to  say  that  they  shot  me  in  the  back."  That  holy 
Sabbath  was  his  last  on  earth. 

When  night  came  on,  and  good  men  laid  them  down  to  peace- 
ful slumbers,  his  murderers  approached  his  quiet  dwelling.  A 
ball  discharged  from  a  revolver  passed  through  the  window,  en- 
tered his  face,  and  he  fell  to  the  floor.  To  make  sure  of  their  vic- 
tim, the  murderers  raised  the  window  and,  reaching  in,  shot  him 
through  the  chest.  They  then  went  round  and  forced  open  the 
door,  and  three  men  entered.  After  a  few  words  with  Brother 
Glanville's  son,  one  of  them  remarked  that  he  had  better  finish 
the  old  man,  and  so  saying  shot  him  again.  Thus  died  Rev. 
Thomas  Glanville  in  the  fifty-third  year  of  his  age. 

After  threatening  to  burn  the  house  and  ordering  the  family 
to  leave  on  short  time,  they  rode  two  miles  to  the  residence  of 
Brother  Glanville's  eldest  son,  Mr.  A.  C.  Glanville,  a  ma'n  of 
fine  mind  and  respectable  literary  attainments,  with  a  meek  and 
quiet  spirit,  and  a  member  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  They 
called  him  up,  and,  entirely  unconscious  of  his  father's  fate  and 
his  own  danger,  he  made  a  light.  No  sooner  was  the  light 
made  than  a  ball  passed  through  his  window,  entered  his  head, 
and  he  fell  lifeless  on  the  hearth.  Thus  perished  father  and  son 
in  one  night. 

Brother  Glanville  had  for  many  years  been  an  ordained  elder 
in  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  and  while  as  a  preacher  he  was 
neither  profound  nor  brilliant,  yet  he  possessed  a  sound  mind,  a 
good  understanding  in  the  things  of  God,  was  a  good  sermon- 
izer,  and  improved  every  year,  so  that  his  future  was  quite 
promising.  Peace  to  his  memory!  JOHN  H.  Ross. 

SEIZURE  OF  THE  CHURCH  AT  INDEPENDENCE. 
The   following   account  of   the   seizure   of   the 


1862-63.  St-  Louis  Conference.  107 

Southern  Methodist  Church  at  Independence  is 
given  by  a  competent  and  interesting  writer,  and 
no  doubt  will  be  read  with  lively  interest: 

In  company  with  a  number  of  lady  friends  I  paid  a  flying 
visit  to  Independence,  Mo.  Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis  had  the  students 
of  his  college  out  in  a  beautiful  grove,  with  hundreds  of  friends 
enjoying  a  May-day  celebration  in  which  the  Queen  of  Spring 
was  coroneted  with  very  interesting  exercises  in  which  the 
young  ladies  of  the  college  took  an  active  part,  making  the  oc- 
casion highly  entertaining  and  enjoyable.  There  were  many 
of  that  happy  band  of  young  ladies  who  had  met  me  on  Satur- 
days for  religious  instruction,  now  so  grown  and  changed  that 
even  a  few  short  years  had  strangely  counterfeited  the  seventy- 
nine  beautiful,  innocent  faces  that  still  hang  in  one  picture- 
group  in  my  library-room.  That  picture  I  have,  for  it  perpet- 
uates what  they  -Mere  then;  yet,  glad  as  we  were  to  meet  after 
so  long  a  separation,  I  had  to  be  told  who  many  of  them  are 
now.  Some  are  grown  and  married,  others  far  away,  and  some 
are  gone  to  the  brighter  world  for  which  they  made  such  early 
preparation. 

There  were  also  many  old,  familiar  faces  who  had  stood  by 
the  Church  and  country  during  all  that  long  reign  of  terror. 
Time  has  been  kinder  to  them  than  war,  and  they  look  happy 
and  hopeful  on  this  festive  occasion.  Brother  Lewis,  who  was 
President  of  the  Howard  Female  College  at  Fayette  during  the 
war,  has  returned  to  Independence,  now  that  the  war  is  over, 
and  re-occupies  his  splendid  buildings  with  a  large  and  flour- 
ishing school,  appreciated  by  the  people,  and  deserves  an  ex- 
tensive patronage. 

There,  too,  stands  that  elegant  church  with  its  stained  win- 
dows and  tall,  graceful  spire,  at  once  the  pride  and  ornament  of 
the  city;  but  its  aisles  are  trod  by  other  feet,  its  cushioned 
pews  are  occupied  by  other  worshipers  than  those  who  built, 
paid  for,  and  owned  the  property.  The  pulpit  and  altar,  so 
tastefully  fitted  and  furnished  by  the  young  men  in  1857,  are 
served  by  other  hands  and  other  tongues. 

The  parsonage,  which  has  housed  so  many  good  men  and 
their  families  of  our  Church,  for  whom  it  was  built,  is  now  oc- 


io8  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

cupied  by  another,  and  the  spacious  yard,  once  so  tastefully 
and  usefully  ornamented  with  shade  and  fruits  and  flowers  and 
evergreens,  by  the  writer,  is  laid  waste  and  almost  bare,  now 
the  common  resort  of  horses,  cows,  hogs,  dogs,  and  children 
which  have  no  right  there. 

Sadly  I  turned  away  from  a  scene  of  wrong  and  desecration 
to  reflect  upon  the  moral  condition  of  the  hearts  that  could  per- 
petrate such  sacrilegious  injustice.  What  right  have  the  North- 
ern Methodists  to  this  property?  Did  they  build  it,  buy  it, 
pay  for  it,  or  even  give  one  dollar  toward  it?  What  claim  do 
they  set  up?  If  there  be  a  higher  standard  of  justice  and  right 
than  civil  law  or  inspired  gospel,  these  men  may  find  some 
claim. 

For  twenty  years  that  property  had  been  held  by  trustees, 
regularly  appointed,  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  and  no  one  questioned  their  legal  right,  or  sought  to 
disturb  their  peaceable  possession.  But  during  the  "  reign  of 
terror"  in  1862-64,  under  which  so  many  people  lost  their  lives 
and  so  many  more  their  property  in  Jackson  County,  and  under 
the  oft-reiterated  threats  of  Northern  Methodists  and  their  hire- 
lings, the  property  passed  out  of  our  hands  without  the  formal- 
ities of  bargain  and  sale,  or  legal  transfer  of  title.  A  Rev. 
lames  Lee,  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North),  made  his  appearance 
and  demanded  possession  of  the  church.  He  first  demanded 
the  key,  which  the  rightful  owners  refused  to  give  up.  He 
then  appealed  to  the  military  commander  of  the  post.  This 
officer  ordered  the  trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  to  re- 
port the  key  to  his  head-quarters  under  pain  of  confiscation  and 
banishment.  The  key  was  surrendered  to  him,  and  he  gave  it 
to  Mr.  Lee  with  his  authority  to  hold  and  use  the  Church. 
After  Mr.  Lee  got  possession  of  the  house  of  w-orship  he,  as  if 
to  "add  insult  to  injury,"  went  through  with  a  formal  dedica- 
tion service,  setting  the  house  apart  to  the  worship  of  God  as 
though  it  had  been  a  pagan  temple ;  after  which  it  was  used  by 
the  Northern  Methodists  as  though  it  belonged  of  right  to  them, 
and  without  any  seeming  compunctions  of  conscience. 

In  1864  Rev.  Mr.  De  Mott  was  sent  by  his  Church  to  hold 
possession  of  and  use  the  property.  Not  content  with  the 
church,  he  demanded  the  parsonage.  He  already  had  the  coat, 
and  he  wanted  the  cloak  also.  But  the  trustees  of  the  M.  E. 


1862-63-  St'  Louis  Conference.  109 

Church,  South,  had  rented  the  parsonage  to  a  poor  widow,  Mrs. 
Brazil  by  name.  Mr.  De  Mott  asked  her  to  vacate  the  house; 
this  she  declined  to  do.  He  demanded  the  key ;  she  refused  to 
give  it  up.  He  then  appealed  to  the  commander  of  the  post, 
and  returned  with  a  military  order  for  her  to  vacate  the  parson- 
age, giving  her  a  short  time  in  which  to  do  it. 

To  turn  a  defenseless  and  helpless  widow,  with  her  children 
and  household  effects,  into  the  streets  to  make  room  for  a 
Northern  Methodist  minister  to  occupy  and  hold  property  that 
belonged  to  others  was,  perhaps,  a  military  movement  of  great 
strategic  importance  to  the  cause  of  the  Union  and  the  resto- 
ration of  the  government;  but  in  the  sight  of  moral  honesty 
and  Christian  decency  the  military  maneuver  becomes  a  pious 
fraud  which  the  perpetrators  were  forced,  after  using  its  oppor- 
tunities for  several  years,  to  confess  before  men. 

The  church  and  parsonage  were  occupied  and  used  by  Mr. 
De  Mott  when,  in  the  fall  of  1865,  Rev.  M.  M.  Pugh  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference,  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  to  the  Independence  Station.  On  his  arrival  he  made  a 
formal  demand  of  Mr.  De  Mott  for  the  property.  This  was  just 
as  formally  refused,  the  occupant  declaring  at  the  same  time 
that  he  had  been  sent  there  by  his  Church  to  hold  that  property 
for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  and  he  intended  to 
do  it.  Recourse  was  had  to  the  law,  and  suit  for  possession  was 
instituted. 

The  ladies,  believing  that  they  had  the  first  and  best  right  to 
the  property,  and  chagrined  at  this  refusal,  entered  the  Church 
one  day  with  their  knitting  and  sewing,  to  the  number  of  thirty, 
and  conducted  themselves  in  a  peaceable,  quiet,  and  orderly 
way,  to  spend  the  day  in  the  house  of  worship  built  and  paid 
for  by  their  fathers,  husbands,  and  brothers.  The  Northern 
Methodist  preacher,  soon  apprised  of  the  fact,  hastened  to  a  civil 
magistrate  and  made  affidavit  that  these  ladies  were  "  disturbing 
the  peace,"  procured  a  peace  warrant  and  a  constable  and  pro- 
ceeded to  the  church,  where  he  found  these  orderly  ladies  "as- 
sembled, neither  with  multitude  or  tumult,"  and  had  them  ar- 
rested and  dragged  before  the  civil  officer  for  trial.  With  all  of 
their  "false  witnesses"  nothing  was  found  in  them  "worthy  of 
prison  or  of  death;"  and  binding  them  over  to  keep  the  peacev 
they  were  released. 


i  ic  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

The  suit  spoken  of  was  called  in  the  Circuit  Court  for  the 
spring  of  1866,  when  Mr.  De  Mott  made  affidavit  that  important 
witnesses  were  absent  and  he  was  not  ready  for  trial.  The  case 
was  continued.  The  following  fall  term  of  the  court  was  held, 
and  the  defendants  again  swore  that  they  were  not  ready  for 
trail.  Again  the  case  was  continued,  but  it  was  apparent  that 
the  motive  for  continuing  the  case  so  often  was  the  further  use 
of  the  property  of  which  they  knew  the  law  would  deprive  them. 
They  were  never  ready  for  trial,  but  began  to  feel  the  force  of 
public  sentiment  and  the  shame  of  fradulent  dealing,  if  the 
sense  of  shame  still  remained;  and  the  wiser  and  abler  of  them 
began  to  fear  the  penalty  not  only  of  fraud,  but  of  rents  and 
damages,  and  advised  a  compromise.  In  February,  1867,  they 
proposed  through  their  counsel,  one  Col.  Hines,  to  surrender 
the  property  and  pay  all  costs  if  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
would  withdraw  the  suit.  To  this  Messrs.  Sawyer,  Chrisman 
&  Hovey,  counsel  for  plaintiffs,  agreed.  The  suit  was  accord- 
ingly withdrawn,  the  property  vacated,  and  the  rightful  owners 
took  possession.* 

In  the  first  part  of  the  above  narrative  we  are 
carried  back  in  memory  to  the  place  where  we 
spent  twelve  years  very  pleasantly  in  charge  of  In- 
dependence Female  College  prior  to  the  war. 
After  the  war  we  returned  to  Independence  and 
had  a  large  and  flourishing  school  until  we  sold  the 
college  buildings  to  the  city  for  a  public  school. 
It  was  there  and  then  before  the  war  that  we  en- 
joyed the  pleasure  of  making  the  acquaintance  of 
Dr.  Leftwich,  who  was  preaching  near  enough  to 
visit  Independence  frequently.  So  that  our  ac- 
quaintance was  cultivated  into  genuine  friendship, 
which  has  known  no  abatement  through  more  than 
three  decades  of  years.  How  much  does  this 
writer  admire  that  true  Christian  friendship  that 

*  Dr.  Leftwich,  in  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


1862-63.  «SV.  Louis  Conference^  in 

nothing  changes — the  same  through  the  mutations 
of  days  and  weeks,  of  months  and  years,  and  will 
be  the  same  through  the  revolving  cycles  of  eter- 
nity. Such  friendship  is  more  valuable  than  silver 
and  gold,  more  precious  than  pearls  and  diamonds. 

REV.  H.  N.  WATTS. 

The  oldest,  the  most  influential  and  useful  min- 
isters were  the  special  victims  of  the  persecutors 
of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  Mr.  Watts  was  one 
of  the  excellent  of  the  earth — a  holy,  consecrated 
man;  active,  zealous,  energetic,  persevering,  and 
indefatigable  in  the  performance  of  his  ministerial 
duties.  He  occupied  a  high  position  in  the  St. 
Louis  Conference,  filled  various  offices  in  the  Church 
with  fidelity  and  success,  and  perhaps  has  accom- 
plished as  much  good  as  any  intinerant  preacher 
in  said  Conference.  His  whole  mind  was  absorbed 
in  the  one  work  of  preaching  the  gospel;  while  the 
politics,  secularities,  and  temporalities  of  this  world 
did  not  trouble  him  much.  His  conversation  was 
in  heaven.  The  following  is  authentic: 

In  1863  Mr.  Watts  was  living  in  Charleston,  Mississippi 
County,  Mo. ;  and  on  the  23d  of  July  was  arrested  at  his  house 
by  a  squad  of  soldiers,  accompanied  by  Meeker  Thurman,  Aaron 
W.  and  John  Grigsby,  and  taken  to  Columbus,  Ky.  He  was 
charged  with  no  crime,  and  no  offense  against  the  laws  and 
peace  of  the  government  was  ever  alleged  against  him.  In  vain 
did  he  plead  the  protection  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States.  He  was  threatened  with  banishment  or  imprisonment 
during  the  war,  unless  he  would  take  and  subscribe  a  military 
oath,  which  was  as  repugnant  to  his  feelings  as  oppressive  to 
the  rights  of  conscience.  After  taking  the  oath  to  secure  his 


ii2  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

liberty,  and  receiving  some  personal  abuse  as  a  minister  of  the 
gospel,  he  was  released  and  permitted  to  return  to  his  home,  aft- 
er an  absence  of  several  days. 

In  the  spring  of  1864,  and  while  Capt.  Ewing's  company  of 
militia  were  stationed  in  Charleston,  and  Lieut.  James  A.  Reed 
was  assistant  provost-marshal,  Mr.  Watts  was  prohibited  from 
preaching  the  gospel  for  several  weeks  by  military  authority. 
He  continued,  however,  to  travel  his  circuit  and  hold  religious 
services.  He  would  read  the  word  of  God,  sing,  pray,  and  ex- 
hort the  people  to  "  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come,"  and  "  lead 
peaceable  and  quiet  lives  in  all  godliness  and  honesty.* 

He  was  very  fortunate  indeed  in  passing  through 
the  troubles  of  these  perilous  times  as  well  as  he 
did. 

THE  CHURCH  AT  SPRINGFIELD. 

Prior  to  the  war  the  members  and  friends  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South,  erected  a  costly  and  mag- 
nificent house  of  worship  in  Springfield.  It  was 
perhaps  the  finest  church  in  the  State  outside  of  the 
metropolis.  It  was  an  object  of  strong  temptation 
to  those  who  were  seizing  churches  vi  et  armis. 
While  they  burned  to  ashes  cheaper  houses  of  wor- 
ship through  that  part  of  the  State,  they  took  care 
to  preserve  the  elegant  edifice  in  Springfield  for 
their  own  use.  Their  title  to  the  cheap  churches 
was  just  as  good  as  to  the  costly  ones.  Strange 
they  burned  their  own  houses  (  ?)  ! 

In  the  report  of  the  committee  appointed  by  the 
St.  Louis  Conference  to  investigate  the  matter  the 
reader  will  find  satisfactory  information  concern- 

J 

ing  it: 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


1862-63.  ^-  Louis  Conference.  113 

To  the  Bishops  and  Members  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference. 

The  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject  of  your 
Church  property  at  Springfield,  Mo.,  and  instructed  to  take  such 
measures  as  they  deemed  proper  to  recover  the  property,  beg 
leave  to  submit  the  following  report: 

One  member  of  your  committee  (R.  P.  Faulkner)  residing  at 
Arlington,  Mo.,  and  two  members  in  St.  Louis,  and  the  proper- 
ty in  question  and  parties  holding  it  being  in  Springfield,  Mo., 
have  had  to  labor  at  considerable  disadvantage  and  loss  of  time, 
owing  to  these  distances. 

Yet  we  have  endeavored  to  give  the  matter  all  the  attention 
that  so  important  a  trust  deserved,  and  for  the  sake  of  common 
justice  and  our  sacred  Christianity  we  regret  to  state  that  our 
house  of  worship  at  Springfield  is  not  yet  in  our  possession. 

But  we  are  happy  to  state  that  we  have  reason  to  believe  that 
we  shall  soon  regain  that  which  is  justly  our  own. 

A  part  of  your  action  on  this  subject  at  your  last  session  was 
"  that  the  presiding  elder  of  the  Springfield  District  should  see 
that  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  our  property  at  Springfield  be  im- 
mediately filled,  according  to  the  Discipline." 

We  take  pleasure  in  stating  that  your  instructions  in  this 
matter  have  been  complied  with  by  Rev.  G.  M.  Winton,  P.  E., 
and  the  following-named  gentlemen  appointed  trustees:  Law- 
son  Fulbright,  Elisha  Headlee,  Thomas  W.  Cunningham,  Adam 
C.  Mitchell,  and  William  Montgomery. 

Parsonage  Property. — In  the  examination  of  this  question  we 
found  that  the  house  was  taken  possession  of  about  the  middle 
of  the  year  1863  by  the  authorities  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  under 
the  idea  that  it  would  be  destroyed  as  an  enemy  of  the  national 
government  if  not  protected  by  them,  and  was  subsequently 
held  and  used  by  them  under  the  discovery  that  it  was  deeded 
to  the  M.  E.  Church,  a  Church  without  representative  or  exist- 
ence in  that  part  of  Missouri  at  the  date  of  said  deed. 

The  facts  in  regard  to  the  title  of  this  property  are  best  ex- 
plained by  reference  to  a  letter  herewith  submitted  (marked  A), 
from  Rev.  B.  R.Johnson,  formerly  a  member  of  your  Confer- 
ence, now  of  California. 

Thus  it  appears  that  the  title  of  the  M.  E.  Church  to  this 
property  is  from  a  clerical  mistake  (?)  and  a  strong  desire  to 
protect  our  interests  from  destruction. 
8 


114  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

We  would  further  state  on  this  point  that  our  examinations 
satisfy  that  the  rental  for  the  use  of  this  property  should  be  at 
least  $25  per  month  for  the  whole  time  (four  and  a  half  years) 
it  has  been  saved  from  destruction  by  our  friends  (?).  As  will 
be  seen  in  a  subsequent  part  of  this  repbrt,  a  claim  equal  to  the 
sum  of  the  rental  is  made  by  those  who  have  possessed  and 
protected  this  property  for  "  needed  repairs."  We  will  recur  to 
this  subject  again  in  its  place. 

House  of  Worshif. — We  regret  exceedingly  to  have  to  report  a 
sad  disappointment  to  our  friends — the  occupants — who  were 
deprived  of  the  use  of  this  house  after  great  preparations  had 
been  made  for  a  fair,  festival,  and  feast  of  fat  things,  by  a  thun- 
der-storm whose  lightning  struck  the  church  and  well-nigh  set- 
tled the  controversy  in  regard  to  it. 

As  soon  as  practicable  your  committee  convened  at  the  St. 
Nicholas  Hotel,  St.  Louis,  and  among  other  things  determined 
that  it  was  necessary  for  one  or  more  of  the  committee  to  visit 
Springfield. 

Shortly  thereafter  R.  P.  Faulkner  went  to  Springfield  and, 
on  an  inquiry  into  the  matter,  elicited  from  the  authorities  of 
the  M.  E.  Church  a  proposition  for  settlement  which  will  be 
presented  presently. 

Just  previous  to  this  William  C.  Jamison,  a  member  of  your 
committee,  received  the  following  letter  from  Judge  Baker,  of 
Springfield  (marked  B). 

We  here  present  the  proposition  referred  to  above  (marked 
C),  with  a  letter  from  R.  P.  Faulker  to  the  committee  (marked 
"  one  " ).  On  receiving  this  communication  your  committee  con- 
vened at  Arlington,  and  on  due  consideration  of  the  proposi- 
tions, made  to  them  the  following  answer  herewith  submitted 
(marked  D). 

This,  our  answer  to  the  committee  on  the  part  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  we  inclosed  to  the  Hon.  John  S.  Phelps,  of  Springfield, 
with  the  following  letter  of  instructions  (marked  E). 

Immediately  after  closing  its  session  at  Arlington  your  com- 
mittee received  the  following  letter  from  Rev.  J.  J.  Bently,  pre- 
siding elder  of  Springfield  District,  M.  E.  Church  (North),  re- 
lating to  the  parsonage  (marked  F).  This  communication  was 
immediately  sent  to  Hon.  John  S.  Phelps,  our  counsel. 

Thus  we  have  given  you  all  that  we  have  been  able  to  do 


1862-63.  <5V.  Louis  Conference.  115 

in  this  matter,  simply  adding  our  opinion  that  we  will  ultimately 
recover  our  property. 

The  condition  of  the  church  at  Springfield,  as  will  be  seen 
by  reference  to  the  letter  of  R.  P.  Faulkner,  who  examined  it, 
requires  immediate  attention. 

The  damage  done  to  the  house  on  the  occasion  of  the  defeat 
of  the  religious  fair  is  thus  reported  on  by  R.  P.  Faulkner: 
"Though  seriously  damaged,  yet  it  can  be  repaired  for  much 
less  than  I  had  any  idea  of  until  I  visited  it.  I  had  a  builder  go 
and  examine  and  make  a  rough  estimate  of  the  cost  to  repair 
the  damage,  including  every  thing  but  seats,  pulpit,  etc.;  who 
reported  to  me  that  if  a  thousand  dollars  would  not  do  it,  twelve 
hundred  would." 

The  committee  submitted  the  following  resolu- 
tions: 

1.  Resolved,  That  the  bishop  be  requested  to  station  one  of 
the  most  efficient  pulpit  and  business  men  at  Springfield. 

2.  That  the  Missionary  Society  be  requested  to  make  as  lib- 
eral  appropriations   as   they  are   able  for  the   support   of   the 
preacher  stationed  at  Springfield. 

3.  That  with  the  approval  of  our  counsel  at  Springfield  and 
the  recommendation  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  the  preacher  in 
charge  be  authorized  and  requested  to  visit  such  places  as  he 
may  see  proper  to  raise  means  to  pay  debts  and  repairs  on  the 
church. 

4.  That  the  whole  matter  pertaining  to  the  church  and  par- 
sonage  at   Springfield   be   referred   to   the   presiding  elder  of 
Springfield  District,  the  preacher  in  charge  of  the  station,  and 
the  trustees  of  the  Church. 

Respectfully  submitted.  W.  M.  PROTTSMAN, 

W.  C.  JAMISON. 

We  have  a  striking  instance  of  the  fierce  and  fiery 
persecutions  to  which  the  ministers  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  were  subjected  in  the  experience  of 

REV.  J.  M.  BREEDING, 

an  account  of  which  is  taken  from  a  very  authentic 
source : 


n6  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

In  March,  1863,  Mr.  Breeding  was  residing  on  Barker's 
Creek,  Henry  County,  Mo.  His  wife  was  very  sick:  not  able  to 
raise  her  head  from  the  pillow.  When  they  were  alone,  and  at 
midnight,  three  armed  men  opened  the  yard  gate,  rode  rapidly 
up  to  the  house,  and  called  for  Mr.  Breeding  to  come  out.  This 
he  declined  to  do,  telling  them  that  he  could  hear  what  they  had 
to  say  where  he  was.  He  saw  from  the  door,  which  he  held  ajar, 
that  they  held  their  pistols  well  in  hand,  as  if  awaiting  an  ob- 
ject to  shoot.  They  ordered  him  to  come  out  a  second  time, 
and  in  no  genteel  language.  He  refused,  saying  to  them  that 
if  they  would  come  to  see  him  in  the  day-time  he  would  see 
and  talk  with  them  like  neighbors. 

They  asked  him  if  he  was  armed.  He  told  them  that  he 
was  a  civil  man,  and  had  some  plows  with  which  he  expected 
to  cultivate  the  ground  in  the  summer;  and  did  not  let  them 
know  that  he  was  wholly  unarmed.  They  asked  his  politics, 
and  were  informed  that  he  n-ever  meddled  with  the  politics  of 
the  country;  that  his  only  platform  was  "repentance  toward 
God  and  faith  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  "  You  are  a  preacher, 
then?"  "Yes,  I  belong  to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South."  "Well, 
that  is  just  what  we  have  understood,  and  we  don't  intend  to 
let  such  a  man  live  in  this  country.  We  have  come  with  au- 
thority to  order  you  to  leave  in  six  days,  and  if  you  are  here  at 
the  expiration  of  that  time  it  will  not  be  well  with  you.  We 
want  to  know  whether  you  intend  to  leave  or  not." 

Mr.  Breeding  asked  for  their  authority,  which  they  declined 
to  give,  whereupon  he  told  them  that  as  he  had  not  meddled  in 
any  way  with  their  political  strife  he  did  not  think  anv  sane  officer 
would  send  them  at  such  a  time  on  such  business.  They  re- 
marked that  he  could  either  obey  or  risk  the  consequences,  and 
turned  and  rode  off. 

A  few  days  after  this  occurrence  Mr.  Breeding  learned  from 
the  nearest  military  post,  through  a  friend,  that  no  such  order 
had  been  issued;  but  that  the  commander  of  the  post,  Capt. 
Galliher,  would  not  be  responsible  for  what  his  men  did  from 
under  his  eye. 

During  the  following  summer  there  were  very  few  nights 
when  one  or  more  of  these  lawless  men  was  not  seen  prowling 
about  the  premises  and  keeping  the  preacher  in  constant  dread 
of  arson  or  assassination.  He  had  no  peace  and  felt  no  security. 


1862-63-  *$V-  Louis  Conference.  117 

In  July  his  appointment  in  Calhoun  was  attended  one  Sab- 
bath by  a  Lieut.  Combs,  with  his  company  of  men,  whom  he 
stationed  at  convenient  places  about  the  church  and  along  the 
road  near  the  church,  as  though  they  expected  to  encounter  a 
desperafe  enemy. 

As  he  approached  the  church  and  began  to  comprehend 
the  situation  he  discovered  what  he  afterward  learned  were 
signals.  When  these  signals  were  made  the  whole  force  moved 
out  to  the  road  and  advanced  rapidly  toward  the  preacher.  He 
was  halted  and  his  name  demanded. 

"  You  pray  for  bush-whackers,  I  learn,"  said  the  officer. 

"  No  more  than  for  other  sinners,"  the  preacher  answered. 

"  But,"  said  the  officer,  "  some  of  the  boys  tell  me  they  have 
heard  you  pray  for  the  success  of  bush-whackers.  They  say 
they  have  known  you  long,  and  that  you  are  an  original  seces- 
sionist; that  you  have  always  believed  in  secession." 

The  preacher  appealed  to  those  who  had  known  him  the  long- 
est, if  they  ever  heard  him  utter  disloyal  sentiments  or  knew 
him  to  attend  a  political  meeting  of  any  kind.  He  was  no  polit- 
ical partisan,  and  never  had  been.  They  finally  told  him  that 
he  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher,  and  that  was  enough,  as 
they  were  all  rebels. 

While  this  conversation  was  going  on,  and  most  of  the  com- 
pany were  in  disorder,  a  squad  of  men  were  drawn  up  in  line 
in  front  of  the  preacher  with  their  guns  ready  for  use.  Lieut. 
Combs  stepped  up  in  front  of  these  men,  when  the  conversation 
closed  with  the  preacher,  and  talked  to  them  some  time  in  a 
subdued  tone  of  voice.  At  the  close  of  the  interview  one  of  the 
men  said  in  a  low  voice,  "  Well,  if  you  will  not  let  us  shoot  him, 
we  will  egg  him,"  and  started  off  to  a  barn  near  by,  from  which 
he  soon  returned  with  his  hands  full  of  eggs.  The  officer  would 
not  let  him  use  the  eggs,  and,  after  some  further  conversation, 
he  dismissed  the  preacher  and  took  his  company  back  to  head- 
quarters. 

In  a  few  days  after  this  Mr.  Breeding  had  occasion  to  go  to 
Windsor  for  medicine  for  his  afflicted  wife.  There  he  again 
met  these  Calhoun  soldiers.  They  were  very  annoying  and  in- 
sulting. A  mounted  squad  of  them  started  off  before  Mr. 
Breeding  was  ready,  and  took  the  road  leading  to  his  house. 
When  he  started  home,  and  had  reached  the  forks  of  the  road, 


n8  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

he  was  going  to  take  the  plainest  and  best  road,  but  his  horse 
pulled  so  obstinately  for  the  other  that  he  finally  yielded  and 
reached  his  home  in  safety.  The  next  day  a  friend  came  to  see 
if  he  was  safe,  and  informed  him  that  the  squad  of  soldiers  that 
left  Windsor  before  him  waylaid  the  road  to  assassinate  him. 
What  a  providential  deliverance! 

The  next  Sabbath  Mr.  Breeding  had  a  regular  appointment  to 
preach  at  Windsor.  With  the  Sabbath  morning  came  a  for- 
aging party  to  his  house  demanding  breakfast.  They  staid 
and  detained  the  preacher  until  it  was  too  late  to  reach  his  ap- 
pointment. This  detention  saved  him  from  further  trouble, 
and  perhaps  his  life.  He  afterward  learned  that  a  band  of 
twenty  men  were  all  that  morning  on  the  road-  that  he  was  ex- 
pected to  pass.  When  it  became  so  late  they  supposed  that  he 
had  gone  some  other  way,  they  went  to  the  Church,  surround- 
ed it,  and  entered,  but  to  discover  again  their  disappointment. 
The  preacher  was  nowhere  to  be  found;  and  in  consultation, 
some  wanted  to  go  immediately  to  his  house  and  inflict  sum- 
mary punishment,  but  other  counsels  prevailed,  and  they  deter- 
mined to  try  him  again  the  next  Sabbath  at  his  appointment  at 
Moffat's  school-house. 

The  Sabbath  came,  and  with  its  earliest  rays  came  a  messen- 
ger from  Mr.  Owen,  a  Baptist  friend,  requesting  Mr.  Breeding 
to  come  to  the  house  immediately,  as  his  son  was  at  the  point  of 
death.  Mr.  Breeding  went  without  delay  several  miles  in  a 
direction  from  the  church.  After  detaining  him  as  long  as  he 
could,  Mr.  Owen  informed  him  of  a  trap  set  for  him  that  day, 
and  that  he  must  remain  at  his  house  all  day.  The  preacher 
was  not  aware  of  any  evil  designs,  and  only  yielded  to  much 
earnest  solicitation  to  keep  out  of  harm's  way. 

After  having  so  often  and  so  narrowly  escaped,  Mr.  Breeding 
thought  it  best  to  seek  safety  elsewhere.  Accordingly,  he  dis- 
posed of  his  effects,  packed  up,  and  journeyed  to  Macon  Coun- 
ty, in  North  Missouri,  and  settled  down  near  the  old  Hebron 
Church.  He  found  at  his  new  little  home  a  faithful  band  of 
men  and  women  who  met  every  Sabbath  where  prayer  was 
wont  to  be  made.  To  these  he  gladly  joined  himself. 

By  this  time  religious  privileges  were  few  and  religious  lib- 
erty greatly  abridged  by  the  operation  of  the  "  new  Constitu- 
tion." Ministers  were  afraid  to  preach,  and  the  membership 


1862-63-  •$*•  Louis  Conference.  119 

discouraged  and  depressed.  The  party  in  power  were  very 
vigilant  in  hunting  out  and  dragging  before  the  civil  courts  all 
non-juring  ministers. 

Mr.  Breeding  could  not  take  the  oath.,  and  he  contented  him- 
self for  some  time  with  an  occasional  exhortation  to  the  faithful 
few  who  still  kept  the  altar  fires  burning  in  a  quiet  way. 

The  prayer-meetings  began  to  attract  the  attention  of  those 
in  authority.  They  concluded  that  Mr.  Breeding  must  be 
preaching,  as  the  meetings  were  so  regular  and  so  well  attend- 
ed. The  super-loyalists  determined  that  if  such  were  the  case 
they  would  take  the  law  into  their  own  hands  and  see  what 
virtue  there  was  in  powder  and  ball. 

The  next  Sabbath  found  eight  armed  men  on  the  front  seat 
to  enforce  the  new  Constitution.  There  appeared  an  equal 
number  of  orderly  citizens  prepared  to  protect  the  peaceful 
worship  of  the  congregation.  For  a  time  matters  wore  quite  a 
menacing  aspect. 

The  prayer-meeting  exercises  were  had,  and  Mr.  Breeding 
closed  up  with  a  warm  and  earnest  exhortation.  The  services 
were  somewhat  abbreviated,  that  the  unfriendly  parties  might 
the  sooner  be  separated. 

The  next  Sabbath  the  same  armed  superloyalists  were 
present,  but  the  friends  of  peace  and  order  were  absent.  The 
preacher  had  great  liberty  in  the  service,  and  felt  no  way  intim- 
idated by  the  presence  of  armed  men  on  the  front  bench.  Dur- 
ing his  earnest  exhortation,  founded  upon  a  favorite  text,  the 
men  became  somewhat  excited,  but  they  had  either  not  chosen 
a  leader  or  the  leader  showed  the  white  feather.  They  kept 
calling  one  upon  the  other  to  start.  "  You  start,  and  I  will  fol- 
low!" "No;  you  start,  and  I  will  follow! "were  expressions, 
though  whispered,  that  could  be  heard  by  those  near  them. 
Such  things  did  not  deter  the  preacher.  They  could  not  brow- 
beat him,  and  finally,  in  their  shame,  they  vented  their  pique 
on  a  luckless  dog  that  lay  stretched  out  on  the  floor  near  them.* 

Thus  by  the  guiding  and  protecting  hand  of  Di- 
vine Providence  Mr.  Breeding  was  brought  safely 
through  all  his  trials  and  persecutions.  On  several 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


i2o  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1862-63. 

different  occasions,  and  at  different  times,  and  in 
different  places  death  seemed  inevitable,  and  yet 
in  every  crisis  deliverance  came  in  a  way  that  he 
knew  not.  No  one  can  read  the  foregoing  narra- 
tive of  his  sufferings  without  seeing  the  direct  and 
positive  interference  of  Providence  in  his  rescue 
from  danger  and  from  death.  He  could  very  ap- 
propriately have  made  a  personal  application  of  Da- 
vid's language:  "The  Lord  is  my  rock,  and  my 
fortress,  and  my  deliverer;  my  God,  my  strength, 
in  whom  I  will  trust;  my  buckler,  and  the  horn  of 
my  salvation,  and  my  high  tower." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Conference  at  Fulton — No  Bishop  Present — Minute  Business — 
History  Confined  Chiefly  to  the  Persecution  of  Her  Ministers 
and  Seizure  of  the  Property  Belonging  to  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South — The  Unarmed  and  Innocent  Persecuted  at  Their 
Homes  and  at  Their  Houses  of  Worship — Denying  the  His- 
tory Does  Not  Change  the  Facts — Murder  of  Rev.  John  L. 
Woods,  a  Local  Preacher — Local  Preachers  Fill  an  Important 
Place  in  the  Church — Persecution  of  Rev.  D.  B.  Cooper  Giv- 
en by  Dr.  Harris — Persecution  of  Rev.  W.  M.  Rush — Troub- 
les of  Rev.  Tyson  Dines,  as  Given  by  Rev.  R.  P.  Farris,  D.D., 
Presbyterian  Minister — Rev.  James  Penn  and  His  Four 
Clerical  Sons — Severe  Trials  of  Rev.  Jesse  Bird,  as  Stated  by 
Himself — Spiritual  State  of  the  Church,  by  Rev  F.  A. 
Savage. 

THE  Forty-seventh  Session  of  the  Missouri  An- 
nual Conference  was  held  at  Fulton,  Mo., 
October  14-20,  1863.  No  bishop  being  present, 
Andrew  Monroe  presided,  and  John  D.  Vincil  was 
elected  Secretary.  After  the  usual  committees 
were  appointed,  the  regular  minute  business  was 
taken  up. 

James  O.  Swinney  was  admitted  on  trial.  John 
W.  Adkisson,  Samuel  Alexander,  S.  J.  Huffaker, 
and  George  C.  Brown  remained  on  trial.  M.  Mc- 
Ilhany,  James  S-  Smith,  and  Jacob  McEwin  were 
admitted  into  full  connection.  W.  W.  McMurry 
was  deacon  of  one  year.  James  S.  Smith,  M.  Mc- 
Ilhany,  and  J.  McEwin  were  traveling  preachers 

(121) 


122  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

who  were  elected  and  ordained  deacons.  The  trav- 
eling preachers,  H.  A.  Bourland,  George  Penn, 
John  F.  Shores,  C.  W.  Collett,  and  Henry  G.  Mc- 
Ewin  were  elected  and  ordained  elders.  C.  W. 
Pritchett,  Thomas  Demoss,  N.  P.  Halsey,T.  Hurst, 
George  Fenton,  Joseph  Devlin,  Jesse  Sutton,  L. 
R.  Downing,  A.  P.  Lynn,  S.  J.  Huffaker,  Jesse 
Faubion,  W.  W.  McMurry,  and  E.  H.  Hudson 
were  supernumerary.  John  F.  Young,  R.  P.  Holt, 
D.  C.  Blackwell,  W.  M.  Wood,  and  M.  L.  Eads 
were  superannuated. 

The  destructive  Civil  War  was  moving  forward 
with  increasing  momentum,  devastating  the  coun- 
try and  spreading  wreck  and  ruin  in  its  course. 
The  Church  papers  being  suppressed,  the  St.  Louis 
Annual  Conference  having  no  published  minutes, 
the  Missouri  Conference  meeting  only  long  enough 
to  transact  its  minute  business  and  make  the  ap- 
pointments, and  all  other  means  of  information  be- 
ing cut  off,  leave  the  historian  with  very  scant  ma- 
terials for  writing  history  outside  of  the  war 
troubles. 

Therefore  during  the  war  period  the  history  of 
"  Methodism  in  Missouri '?  is  necessarily  confined 
mostly  to  the  persecution  of  the  ministers  and  the 
seizure  of  the  property  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
by  their  "  friends  (?)  the  enemy."  The  questions 
may  be  asked:  "  What  better  could  have  been  ex- 
pected? Were  they  not  secessionists,  and  in  favor 
of  the  rebellion  ?  "  Their  lives  during  the  war  suf- 
ficiently answers  these  questions.  Let  it  be  under- 


1863-64.  Missouri  Conference.  123 

stood  that  we  are  now  speaking  of  them  as  a  class. 
We  readily  admit  that  some  of  them,  on  their  own 
individual  responsibility,  did  espouse  the  Confed- 
erate cause,  but  not  a  sufficient  number  to  brand 
the  -whole  C/iurc/iwith  secession.  If  they  had  per- 
secuted only  those  who  took  part  in  the  rebellion, 
the  case  would  have  been  very  different.  The  fact 
is,  they  were  not  the  ones  they  persecuted.  They 
eagerly  pursued  the  destruction  of  those  ministers 
who  refused  to  join  the  Confederate  army,  who  did 
not  participate  in  the  rebellion,  who  staid  at  home  as 
loyal,  peaceable,  and  good  citizens,  and  who  gave 
their  undivided  time  and  attention  to  their  one  work 
of  preaching  the  gospel  of  peace  and  salvation  to  lost 
sinners.  They  realized  all  the  time  in  their  con- 
sciousness that  they  were  called  of  God  to  preach 
his  word,  and  every  one  of  them  truly  felt  "Woe 
is  me  if  I  preach  not  the  gospel."  With  some  their 
conviction  of  duty  was  so  strong  that  they  would 
rather  die  than  not  to  preach.  See  one  with 
Christian  heroism  standing  in  the  pulpit  as  the  mes- 
senger of  heaven,  confronted  by  ten  or  twenty  or 
thirty  armed  men,  looking  vengeance  at  him,  and 
with  drawn  and  presented  muskets  and  bayonets, 
pistols  and  swords,  ready  at  the  slightest  signal  and 
as  quick  as  powder  to  dispatch  their  devoted  victim  ! 
But  behold  him  unmoved,  self-possessed,  undaunt- 
ed, preaching  to  his  persecutors  in  a  calm,  clear, 
strong  tone  of  voice,  calling  them  to  "  repentance 
toward  God  and  faith  toward  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ!  " 


124  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

Where  did  the  persecutors  go  to  find  the  victims 
of  their  cruelty?  Did  they  go  to  the  Confederate 
army,  to  the  ranks  of  those  who  were  arrayed 
against  the  Federal  cause,  or  to  those  who  were  en- 
gaged in  recruiting  the  Southern  forces?  Had 
they  gone  there,  they  would  have  met  an  enemy  in 
arms,  and  would  have  had  to  do  some  fighting. 
They  preferred  to  carry  on  their  warfare  among 
non-combatant,  peaceable,  and  law-abiding  citizens, 
particularly  among  ministers  and  Churches  whose 
religion  teaches  them  that  their  weapons  are  not 
carnal,  but  spiritual;  and  tells  them  to  put  up  their 
sword  in  its  place,  that  they  who  use  the  sword  shall 
perish  by  the  sword,  and  to  follow  peace  with  all 
men.  Hence  to  find  the  objects  of  their  pursuit  they 
went  to  their  peaceful  and  quiet  homes  in  the  dead 
hour  of  midnight;  foun.d  the  inmates  sleeping 
soundly  and  sweetly  in  the  arms  of  innocence  and 
domestic  happiness.  But  O  how  quickly  does  the 
scene  change  into  an  awful  tragedy !  They  awaken 
the  man  of  the  house  with  the  shrill  and  loud 
whoops  of  midnight  assassins.  As  the  man,  who 
is  somewhat  alarmed,  but  not  knowing  that  there  is 
any  thing  wrong,  strikes  a  light,  a  pistol  is  fired, 
sending  a  bullet  through  the  man's  head,  and  he 
falls  dead  on  the  hearth.  When  the  persecutors 
fail  to  find  them  at  home  they  follow  them  to  their 
fields,  where  they  are  at  work  cultivating  the 
ground  to  make  a  support  for  their  dependent  fam- 
ilies. They  hurry  them  from  their  fields  into  the 
woods,  and  cruelly  murder  them  in  the  first  thicket 


1863-64.  Missouri  Conference.  125 

they  come  to.  Sometimes  they  penetrate  the  woods 
several  miles,  and  for  many  days  their  families  are 
in  ignorance  of  their  fate,  and  when  found  the 
bodies  have  been  mutilated  by  the  hogs.  Again, 
these  wicked  persecutors  go  to  Church  where  the 
people  are  assembled  in  worship,  to  kill  the  preach- 
er— go  there  on  the  Sabbath.  What  a  singular  time 
and  place  for  men  to  go  armed  and  equipped  for 
battle!  They  unceremoniously  drag  the  minister 
out  of  the  pulpit,  and  carry  him  off  to  do  just  what 
they  please  with  him ;  and  history  tells  what  they 
did  with  many  of  them.  It  not  only  tells  what  they 
did  with  them,  but  also  tells  who  did  it — who  were 
the  prime  movers,  instigators,  and  actors  in  it.  No 
intelligent  person  can  read  carefully  the  history  of 
the  persecution  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  dur- 
ing the  war  without  understanding  the  source  from 
whence  all  their  trouble  came.  History  cannot  fail 
to  reveal  this  truth,  because  it  deals  in  facts  and 
makes  those  facts  known ;  and  to  deny  the  facts  of 
history  only  proves  the  guilt  of  the  persons  to  whom 
the  facts  relate.  The  Roman  Catholics'  trying  to 
repudiate  the  history  of  their  cruel  persecutions  of 
the  true  followers  of  Christ,  in  the  days  of  the  in- 
quisition and  martyrdom,  does  not  change  the 
mind  of  any  one  acquainted  with  their  history. 
They  would  gladly  expunge  the  abominable  rec- 
ord that  they  have  been  making,  running  back 
for  more  than  a  thousand  years,  but  they  had 
just  as  well  try  to  blot  the  sun  out  of  the  heavens. 
That  history  will  live  as  a  testimony  against  them 


126  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

when  marble  monuments  shall  have  crumbled  into 

dust. 

REV.  JOHN  L.  WOOD. 

He  was  a  local  preacher  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  in  Sullivan  County,  Mo.  He  occupied  an 
honorable  and  useful  position  in  the  Church.  The 
local  ministry  is  a  power  for  good  in  the  Church. 
It  is  impossible  for  the  itinerant  preachers  to  visit 
every  neighborhood  and  preach  in  every  commu- 
nity throughout  the  entire  country.  It  is  as  much 
as  they  can  do  to  give  proper  attention  to  the  most 
important  places  in  their  circuits  and  stations,  and 
if  there  were  no  local  preachers  in  the  Church  the 
sparsely  settled  neighborhoods  and  remote  sections 
of  the  country  would  be  destitute  of  Methodist 
preaching,  and  in  some  places  of  all  kinds  of 
preaching. 

Hence  there  are  many  fields  of  usefulness  in 
which  they  may  accomplish  great  good  in  the  sal- 
vation of  sinners.  Without  the  occupancy  of  those 
neglected  and  destitute  places  by  the  local  preach- 
ers, many  precious  souls  would  be  lost.  Then  too, 
by  an  harmonious  arrangement  with  the  itinerant 
preacher,  the  local  preacher  can  render  him  im- 
portant assistance  by  co-operating  with  him  in  his 
work,  and  by  helping  him  in  his  special  meetings 
and  protracted  efforts;  can  also  preach  for  him 
when  sick  or  absent. 

Local  preachers  frequently  have  interesting  re- 
vivals of  religion  in  which  many  persons  are  con- 
verted and  unite  with  the  Church.  In  this  way 


1863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  127 

they  are  useful  in  helping  to  build  up  the  Church 
by  increasing  her  numbers.  All  this,  however, 
depends  upon  their  zeal,  activity,  and  faithfulness 
in  the  cause  of  Christ.  From  these  and  other  con- 
siderations, we  cannot  do  otherwise  than  view  the 
local  ministry  as  an  important  part  of  the  Church. 

Mr.  Wood  served  the  Church  with  fidelity  in  the 
capacity  of  a  local  preacher,  but  being  a  Southern 
Methodist  preacher  was  enough  to  make  him  a 
victim  of  the  wick'ed  and  reckless  persecution 
which  was  raging  all  over  the  country.  While  in 
Unionville,  Putnam  County,  he  was  deliberately 
shot  in  the  back  by  a  small  band  of  soldiers  of 
the  Eighteenth  Regiment  of  Missouri  Volunteers. 
They  knew  nothing  about  him;  never  saw  him 
before,  never  spoke  to  him.  He  was  pointed  out  to 
them  by  a  spy  as  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher, 
and  they  walked  up  without  saying  a  word  and 
shot  him  in  the  back,  the  ball  passing  through  his 
body  and  lodging  in  the  skin  on  the  opposite  side. 

Hear  what  a  reliable  person  says  about  him — 
one  who  knew  him  well. 

Brother  Wood  was  a  good  man — a  man  that  I  loved  and  that 
I  loved  to  love.  He  had  the  confidence  of  all  before  the  war; 
but  when  the  war  came  it  was  considered  by  some  a  great  crime 
to  be  a  Southern  Methodist,  and  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher 
was  thought  by  a  great  many  to  be  unfit  to  live  and  enjoy  the 
blessing  of  the  best  government  under  the  sun.  Brother  Wood's 
only  crime  was  that  he  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher. 
He  lived  a  good  man  and  died  a  good  man.  He  died  in  imita- 
tion of  his  Master,  praying  for  his  murderers:  "Father,  forgive 
them,  they  know  not  what  they  do." 

The  man  who  shot  him  and  the  rest  of  the  mob  who  abused  him 


128  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

and  threw  brickbats  at  him  were  all  strangers  to  him.  They 
certainly  could  not  have  murdered  him  had  they  known  him. 
Who  it  was  that  pointed  him  out  to  them  I  know  not,  but  some- 
body did  it. 

After  he  died  the  same  bloody  hands  put  his  body  in  an  old 
box  that  had  been  used  as  a  watering-trough,  and  buried  him  be- 
side a  bush-whacker  who  had  been  killed  there  some  time  before. 
His  home  was  only  twenty  miles  distant,  in  Sullivan  County; 
yet  before  his  wife  could  reach  the  spot  he  was  buried.  His 
remains  were  disinterred,  taken  home,  and  decently  buried  in 
the  family  grave-yard;  there  to  await  the  sound  of  the  archan- 
gel's trump.  Peace  to  his  ashes!  «  S.  S.  HARDIN. 

Thus  this  good  man  was  murdered  by  a  band  of 
ruffians  in  a  most  brutal  manner.  They  assigned 
no  other  cause  for  their  outrageous  conduct  than 
that  he  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher.  The 
Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States  guaran- 
tee to  every  man  liberty  of  conscience  and  the 
right  to  worship  God  in  his  own  way  and  in  the 
Church  of  his  choice.  Religion  is  a  matter  be- 
tween man  and  his  God ;  and  no  human  authority, 
individual,  corporate,  or  governmental,  has  any 
right  to  interfere  with  the  claims  of  God  and  man's 
corresponding  duties  to  his  God.  Our  great  and 
glorious  government  recognizes  this  truth,  and 
therefore  secures  to  every  man  religious  liberty. 
Then,  in  this  case,  who  were  disloyal,  the  savages 
who  killed  the  man  because  he  was  religious,  or 
the  man  who  died  a  martyr  for  the  truth  ?  Would 
not  the  highest  judiciary  of  the  country  pronounce 
them  murderers  in  the  first  degree? 

REV.  D.  B.  COOPER. 
This  pious  and  useful  clergyman  was  preaching 


863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  129 

one  Sabbath  in  Laclede,  Mo.,  when  the  congrega- 
tion was  disturbed  by  the  appearance  of  a  squad  of 
soldiers  seen  on  the  outside  of  the  church.  They 
had  devised  a  scheme  to  give  Mr.  Cooper  a  ride 
on  a  rail  that  day.  They  were  at  that  time  stop- 
ping at  Brookfield,  and  they  went  up  to  Laclede  to 
execute  their  scheme  and  have  some  fun  at  Mr. 
Cooper's  expense. 

Dr.  Harris,  noted  for  his  truthfulness  and  integ- 
rity, furnished  an  interesting  account  of  the  affair, 
which  was  published  in  a  newspaper.  The  Doctor 
was  not  a  member  of  the  Church — not  a  professor 
of  religion,  but  had  the  confidence  of  the  commu- 
nity in  which  he  lived.  He  used  very  strong 
language  and  forcible  expressions,  more  so  than 
we  would  have  done,  in  giving  utterance  to  his 
convictions.  Read  what  he  says: 

In  the  summer  of  1863  Rev.  D.  B.  Cooper,  now  of  Mount 
Sterling,  Ky.,  was  on  the  circuit  in  Linn  County,  Mo.  He  is 
one  of  the  purest  men  I  have  ever  known,  and  remarkably  ret- 
icent. I  knew  him  intimately  and  well,  being  his  physician 
and  personal  friend.  He  never  preached  or  talked  politics, 
even  to  his  most  intimate  friends  and  acquaintances.  If  there 
was  but  one  man  in  Missouri  during  those  wicked  years  of  hor- 
ror walking  humbly  before  God  and  acting  uprightly  before 
his  fellow-men,  that  man  was  D.  B.  Cooper. 

On  Sunday  he  was  preaching  at  Laclede,  my  then  residence. 
Some  one  whispered  to  me  that  some  soldiers  were  outside  in- 
tending to  ride  the  preacher  on  a  rail.  I  went  out,  and  sure 
enough  there  were  some  half-dozen  soldiers  who  had  come  up 
from  Brookfield,  had  gone  into  a  "  loyal "  doggery,  imbibed 
freely,  and,  meeting  some  "loyal  Methodists,"  were  told  that  a 
rebel  was  preaching.  Under  the  stimuli  of  whisky  they  had  come 
to  the  Church  with  a  fence-rail  intending  to  commit  an  outrage 
upon  this  gentleman.  But  "man  proposes  and  God  disposes." 
9 


130  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

I  tried  to  dissuade  them  from  their  purpose,  but  could  not, 
and  went  back  into  the  church  to  a  lieutenant  of  Col.  McFer- 
rin's  regiment,  then  stationed  in  Laclede,  and  told  him  to  go  to 
Col.  McFerrin  and  tell  him  to  send  a  file  of  soldiers  immediate- 
ly. I  knew  McFerrin  could  be  relied  on,  as  he  was  a  Democrat 
and  a  gentleman.  There  was  no  time  to  lose;  service  was 
nearly  over,  and  neither  Mr.  Cooper  nor  his  congregation 
knew  any  thing  of  the  impending  outrage.  The  upper  floor  of 
a  "loyal  Methodist"  house  near  by  was  full  of  "God's  elect" 
to  witness  the  fun.  Just  before  the  service  closed  the  braves 
crowded  into  the  house,  and  when  the  congregation  was  dis- 
missed, they,  the  soldiers,  were  so  situated  that  they  had  to 
leave  the  house  last.  When  they  came  out  and  were  about  to 
lift  their  rail  at  the  side  of  the  house  and  seize  Mr.  Cooper, 
who  was  yet  in  ignorance  of  their  designs,  they  and  all  but 
myself  were  surprised  to  see  two  files  of  soldiers,  with  fixed 
bayonets,  marching  down  on  us  so  as  to  encompass  the  entire 
crowd.  As  no  violence  had  been  done,  no  arrests  were  made. 
The  miserable  tools  of  the  bad-hearted  fanatics  slunk  away  like 
whipped  curs,  leaving  their  pious  (?)  instigators  gnashing  their 
teeth  and  calling  down  curses  upon  McFerrin  and  myself.  I 
don't  think  their  prayers  have  ever  been  answered. 

These  maudlin  soldiers  were  not  to  blame.  They  were  tools 
in  the  hands  of  the  base-hearted  men  and  women  who  insti- 
gated the  outrage.  This  act  is  only  a  type  of  the  general  con- 
duct of  this  people  during  the  war,  who  are  now  whining  union 
with  you.  I  am  no  professor  of  Christianity,  but  if  such  people 
are  Christians,  or  your  union  with  them  would  compose  a 
Christian  body,  I  pray  the  Giver  of  all  good  to  incline  my  heart 
to  heathenism  rather  than  such  a  mongrel  abomination. 

I  was  living  in  Boonville  when  they  committed  the  theft,  of 
your  church  there,  and  know  all  about  it;  but  you  will  get  the 
particulars  of  that  honest  (?)  act  from  others. 

I  have  given  you  the  facts,  but  have  taken  no  pains,  as  you 
see.  You  may  have  to  re-write  it.  You  are  at  liberty  to  insert  in 
your  book  over  my  signature  if  you  wish.  N.  W.  HARRIS. 

REV.  W.  M.  RUSH. 

This  name  is  a  household  word  in  the  Methodist 
homes  within  the  bounds  of  the  Missouri  Confer- 


1863-64.  Missouri  Conference.  131 

ence.  Indeed,  this  good  and  great  man — great  in 
goodness — was  known  and  loved  throughout  the 
State  of  Missouri.  Distinguished  for  his  sound  doc- 
trines and  sterling  principles,  and  for  a  faithful  life 
continually  exemplifying  said  doctrines  and  princi- 
ples, as  sound  in  practice  as  he  was  in  theory,  solid 
as  a  rock,  firm  as  the  mountains,  he  turned  not 
aside  either  to  the  right  or  to  the  left.  He  could 
very  appropriately  have  used  St.  Paul's  language: 
"Forgetting  those  things  which  are  behind,  and 
reaching  forth  unto  those  things  which  are  before, 
I  press  toward  the  mark  for  the  prize  of  the  high 
calling  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus."  We  love  to  con- 
template such  a  character  of  Christian  excellency, 
but  as  a  biographical  sketch  of  him  is  given  in  the 
Minutes  of  the  Missouri  Conference,  and  will  ap- 
pear in  its  proper  place,  we  need  not  extend  our 
remarks  along  this  line,  but  direct  the  attention  of 
the  reader  to  that  part  of  his  history  embraced  in 
the  Conference  year  of  1862-63,  and  relating  to 
his  war  troubles.  The  information  comes  to  us 
through  a  very  reliable  source,  and  the  reader  may 
find  it  given  below: 

Rev.  W.  M.  Rush  was  stationed  in  St.  Joseph  in  1861,  the 
year  the  war  broke  out.  He  was  deeply  impressed  with  the  ne- 
cessity of  caution  and  prudence  in  the  conduct  of  his  pulpit  and 
public  services,  as  the  people  to  whom  he  ministered  were  di- 
vided on  the  questions  at  issue  in  the  war.  He  was  so  careful 
not  to  give  offense  to  any  that  he  framed  a  somewhat  formal 
prayer  to  be  used  in  public  services  touching  the  troubles  of  the 
country.  It  was  about  as  follows:  "  O  Thou  who  art  infinite  in 
wisdom,  in  goodness,  and  in  power,  we  pray  thee  so  to  direct  the 
affairs  of  this  country  that  the  events  that  are  now  transpiring 


132  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

may  all  result  for  the  glory  and  well-being  of  humanity.  We 
pray  that  those  in  authority  may  have  wisdom  to  direct  them  in 
adopting  such  measures  as  shall  be  promotive  of  the  best  inter- 
ests of  all  the  people." 

To  this  form  of  prayer  and  the  sentiments  that  it  contained 
he  thought  all  good  citizens  of  either  party  could  say  "Amen." 
He  carefully  abstained  from  every  expression  that  would  be  of- 
fensive to  the  sectional  feelings  and  views  of  any  of  his  congre- 
gation. In  this  he  was  particular  and,  he  thought,  successful. 
Matters  passed  on  well  enough  until  early  in  February,  1862, 
when,  after  preaching  on  Sabbath,  he  called  on  the  Rev.  W.  C. 
Toole,  a  local  preacher,  to  close  the  service  with  prayer.  He 
was  a  strong  partisan,  and  his  language  in  the  prayer  was  ex- 
tremely bitter  toward  those  in  rebellion  against  the  government. 
Though  the  congregation  was  much  divided  in  sentiment,  they 
were  at  peace  among  themselves.  This  prayer  was  like  a  fire- 
brand. It  excited  a  good  deal  of  feeling,  and  people  of  opposite 
views  thought  it  much  out  of  place.  Upon  reflection  and  con- 
sultation with  his  leading  brethren,  he  determined  thereafter  to 
close  his  own  services  with  prayer,  which  ministers  should  al- 
ways do,  unless  other  ministers  are  present  and  in  the  pulpit. 
He  pursued  this  course  but  one  Sabbath  afterward,  and  then  a 
brother  minister  (the  Rev.  S.  W.  Cope)  preached  for  him,  when, 
during  the  week  following,  Brig. -Gen.  B.  F.  Loan,  then  in  com- 
mand, sent  for  Mr.  Rush  to  report  himself  at  his  head-quarters. 
This  he  did,  and  Gen.  Loan  told  him  that  he  had  concluded  to 
close  his  church.  Mr.  Rush  asked  on  what  account.  He  re- 
plied: "Because  of  disloyalty."  He  was  then  asked  in  what  re- 
spect they  were  disloyal,  and  answered  that  he  was  informed 
that  a  prayer  for  the  government  could  not  be  offered  in  that 
church  without  giving  offense. 

The  whole  matter  of  the  prayer  of  Mr.  Toole  and  the  gener- 
al character  of  the  service  were  then  explained  to  Gen.  Loan. 
Mr.  Rush  was  careful  to  give  the  reasons  for  avoiding  the  in- 
troduction of  any  thing  savoring  of  sectional  views  into  the  pub- 
lic service:  that  they  could  not  settle  the  troubles  of  the  country 
in  the  Church  service;  that  such  an  effort  would  onlv  destroy 
the  peace  of  the  Church  without  in  the  least  benefiting  the 
country ;  that  no  prayer  savoring  of  secession  had  ever  been  of- 
fered in  the  church,  or  would  be  tolerated  on  any  account;  that 


1863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  133 

the  course  pursued  was  the  only  proper  one;  and  that  if  all 
the  Churches  in  the  land  would  attend  to  their  appropriate  work 
and  let  politics  alone,  it  would  be  far  better  for  the  country.  To 
all  of  this  the  general  replied  that  the  time  had  come  when 
there  must  be  a  distinction  in  the  Churches  between  patriots  and 
traitors.  Mr.  Rush  told  him  that  he  could  not  discriminate  in 
his  Church  on  account  of  political  opinions;  that  he  had  been 
in  the  ministry  for  more  than  twenty-five  years,  and  in  all  that 
time  he  had  not  in  a  single  sentence,  in  prayer  or  sermon,  given 
utterance  to  a  word  or  sentence  by  which  his  opinions  could  be 
known  upon  any  political  questions  at  issue  before  the  country, 
and  that  he  did  not  expect  in  the  future  to  depart  from  that 
course.  The  general  replied  that  his  mind  was  made  up  to 
close  the  church.  The  interview  ended,  and  the  church  was 
closed. 

Soon  afterward  the  general  directed  a  general  order  to  be  is- 
sued forbidding  Mr.  Rush  preaching  or  conducting  any  kind 
of  religious  service  within  the  bounds  of  his  military  district. 
Thus  he  was  silenced,  deposed  from  the  ministry,  and  his  ordi- 
nation credentials  revoked  by  a  military  satrap;  an  embassa- 
dor  for  God  stricken  down  by  one  stroke  of  a  pen  to  which  bay- 
onets imparted  power;  a  messenger  of  salvation  to  dying  men 
silenced  by  the  caprice  of  shoulder-straps ;  and  one  to  whom  the 
risen  Messiah  by  his  Spirit  said,  "  Go  into  all  the  world  and 
preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature,"  suspended  from  his  divine 
commission  by  the  decree  of  human  power ;  a  "  legate  of  the 
skies"  at  the  feet  of  a  miserable  specimen  of  human  weakness 
clothed  with  a  little  brief  authority! 

After  Gen.  Loan  was  dismissed  from  the  military  service  by 
Gov.  Gamble,  and  Gen.  W.  P.  Hall  had  succeeded  him  in  com- 
mand of  the  district,  Mr.  Rush  addressed  a  note  to  Gen.  Hall, 
calling  his  attention  to  the  order  of  Gen.  Loan,  and  asking  its 
revocation.  Mr.  Rush  hoped  for  much  consideration  at  the 
hands  of  Gen.  Hall,  from  a  somewhat  intimate  acquaintance  of 
sixteen  years,  and  the  further  fact  that  at  the  beginning  of  the 
troubles  their  views  were  in  perfect  harmony.  He  had  no 
doubt  whatever  but  that  the  silencing  order  of  Gen.  Loan 
would  be  revoked.  But  for  once  he  had  mistaken  the  man.  Mr. 
Rush  did  not  then  properly  estimate  the  power  of  the  German 
Radicals  of  the  district  nor  the  ambition  of  Gen.  Hall — the  ne- 


134  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

cessity  for  him  to  manufacture  a  character  for  extreme  loyalty, 
in  doing  which  he  would  sacrifice  any  man  or  any  principle  that 
stood  in  the  way  of  his  personal  promotion. 

Gen.  Hall  not  only  refused  to  revoke  the  order  of  Gen.  Loan, 
but  published  in  the  St.  Joseph  Herald,  a  paper  that  circulated 
extensively  in  the  military  camps,  his  letter  to  Mr.  Rush,  in 
which  the  latter  was  denounced  as  a  traitor  and  unworthy  the 
protection  of  the  government.  While  Gen.  Loan,  in  his  per- 
sonal intercourse  with  Mr.  Rush,  was  courteous  and  gentleman- 
ly, Gen.  Hall  was  abusive,  ungentlemanly,  and  tyrannical.  His 
published  letter  unveiled  his  true  character,  while  it  subjected 
its  helpless  victim  to  suspicion,  insult,  and  attempts  at  brutal  as- 
sassination. 

Mr.  Rush,  in  the  midst  of  such  trials  and  dangers,  had  to 
give  up  his  charge  and  return  to  Chillicothe.  Here  he  found 
his  beautiful  home  laid  waste:  the  fencing  destroyed,  the  house 
broken  up,  horses  stabled  in  three  rooms  on  the  first  floor,  and 
soldiers  quartered  on  the  second  floor,  and  the  fruit-trees  and 
shrubbery  all  destroyed. 

He  rented  a  house  for  his  family,  and  while  the  officers  of 
the  post  always  treated  him  with  courtesy  and  kindness, 
Gen.  Hall's  letter  had  stirred  up  the  common  soldiery  until  his 
life  and  the  lives  of  his  family  were  in  constant  peril.  When 
he  discovered  this  state  of  things  he  wrote  Gen.  Hall  a  polite 
letter,  protesting  against  his  published  letter,  representing  the 
injustice  he  had  done  him,  and  the  danger  to  his  person  and 
life  caused  by  it.  Gen.  Hall  returned  his  letter,  and  in  reply 
threatened  him  with  a  military  commission. 

About  the  first  of  May,  1863,  a  bold  attempt  was  made  to  as- 
sassinate him  in  his  own  house.  His  house  was  first  assailed 
with  stones  and  brickbats,  by  which  the  windows  were  crushed 
in  and  the  doors  battered.  Pistol  shots  were  then  fired  through 
the  doors  and  windows,  but  a  kind  Providence  protected  him 
and  his  family  from  serious  injury.  On  reporting  the  facts  to 
the  officers  in  command,  protection  was  promptly  furnished, 
and  a  guard  stationed  at  the  house.  But  at  the  same  time  the 
officers  advised  him  to  seek  safety  elsewhere;  that  with  all 
their  efforts  to  protect  him  the  assassin's  missile  might  any 
moment  put  an  end  to  his  life. 

On  Wednesday  evening,  just  at  dark,  his  son  William,  while 


1863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  135 

feeding,  was  shot  at  by  some  one  who  had  secreted  himself  but  a 
few  yards  from  him.  The  bullet  entered  his  cap  just  above  his 
forehead,  and  passed  out  behind.  An  inch  lower  would  have 
killed  him.  The  shot  was  no  doubt  intended  for  his  father. 

Mr.  Rush  found  it  necessary  for  the  safety  of  himself  and 
family  to  remove  to  St.  Louis  and  remain  there  until  the  close 
of  the  war.  He  found  the  Mound  Church  without  a  pastor,  and 
by  the  appointment  of  the  presiding  elder  took  charge  of  that 
Church,  and  there  remained  until  the  quiet  and  safety  that  sue 
ceeded  the  war  were  restored  to  the  State.* 

It  is  astonishing  how  few,  if  any,  ministers  ot 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  escaped  persecution  in 
Missouri  during  the  Civil  War  and  the  reign  of  ter- 
ror which  continued  some  time  after  the  war.  The 
persecutors  had  a  perfect  system  of  espionage,  and 
their  spies  were  everywhere  throughout  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  State.  Wicked  men  would  re- 
port on  ministers  through  personal  pique  and  ani- 
mosity because  their  gospel  preaching  and  their 
righteous  lives  of  self-denial  and  cross-bearing  con- 
stantly rebuked  them  for  their  outrageous  wicked- 
ness. Jesus  truly  said,  "All  that  will  live  godly 
in  Christ  Jesus  shall  suffer  persecution;"  and  we 
might  add  that  if  they  persecuted  and  crucified  the 
immaculate  Lamb  of  God  they  will  take  great  pleas- 
ure in  persecuting  and  killing  his  true  disciples. 
If,  by  the  utmost  discretion  and  precaution  and  a 
judicious  course  of  living,  any  Southern  Methodist 
preacher  could  have  passed  through  the  war  undis- 
turbed and  without  molestation,  that  man  was 

REV.  TYSON  DINES. 
But  even  this   non-combatant,   quiet   minister   of 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


136  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

the  gospel,  who,  like  his  Lord  and  Master,  was  a 
peace-maker  wherever  he  went,  was  not  allowed 
to  live  in  peace. 

The  editor  of  the  Missouri  Presbyterian,  Rev. 
R.  P.  Farris,  D.D.,  through  great  kindness,  has 
given  an  account  of  Mr.  Dines's  disturbances  and 
troubles  in  time  of  the  Civil  War,  as  follows : 

When  the  war  began  this  esteemed  brother  was  in  charge  of 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  St.  Charles.  The  writer  of  these 
lines,  not  belonging  to  his  denomination,  knew  him  well  and 
loved  him  as  a  child-like  Christian,  a  faithful  preacher  of  the 
gospel  for  twenty -five  years,  a  high-minded  man,  a  most  pru- 
dent pastor.  Determined  to  know  nothing  but  Christ  and  him 
crucified,  not  only  did  he  keep  politics  and  the  exciting  topics 
of  the  day  out  of  his  pulpit,  but  also  he  sedulously  kept  aloof, 
as  far  as  was  at  all  possible,  even  from  his  own  parishioners,  so 
as  to  avoid  conversing  about  the  war,  and  refrained  absolutely 
from  reading  newspapers,  so  that  he  might  be  ignorant  of,  and 
uninfluenced  by  and  unable  to  talk  of  the  current,  terrible 
events.  Yet  this  man,  because  he  pursued  this  course,  and 
would  not  prostitute  his  office  and  influence  to  the  schemes 
and  passions  of  the  hour,  was  accused,  in  a  public  speech  July 
4,  1862,  by  Walter  W.  Edwards,  then  prosecuting  attorney,  now 
circuit  judge,  of  praying  in  his  Church  publicly  for  "Jeff 
Davis  and  the  success  of  the  Southern  Confederacy."  Of 
course  the  design  of  this  lying  vilification  was  to  make  Mr. 
Dines  obnoxious  to  the  military  authorities,  and  thus  to  secure 
his  removal  and  the  closing  of  his  Church,  or  its  perversion  to 
the  purpose  of  the  party  in  power. 

In  September,  1862,  Mr.  Dines  was  arrested  on  the  charge  of 
"general  disloyalty ."  (Does  anvbodv  know  what  that  is?)  He 
was  arraigned  before  one  Lewis  Merrill,  brigadier-general  com- 
manding the  district — a  profligate  and  a  poltroon.  The  follow- 
ing conversation  was  held: 

Merrill:  "Mr.  Dines,  are  you  a  minister?" 

Mr.  Dines:  "Yes,  sir." 

Merrill:  "Of  what  denomination?" 

Mr.  Dines  :  "  Methodist  Episcopal." 


1863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  137 

Merrill:  "Methodist,  South?" 

Mr.  Dines  :  "  Yes,  sir." 

Merrill:  "  Well,  sir,  that  of  itself  is  enough  to  condemn  you." 
And  during  the  interview  the  licentious  coward  presumed  to 
say,  in  a  rough,  brutal  manner,  to  the  meek  and  venerable  serv- 
ant of  Jesus:  "Mr.  Dines,  you  have  read  the  Bible  to  little  pur- 
pose.; you  are  ignorant  of  the  Scriptures." 

Mr.  Dines  v.as  held  to  be  guilty  of  "general  disloyalty,"  and 
Merrill  sentenced  him  "  to  be  confined  during  the  war,"  and 
soon  sent  him  under  guard  to  Gratiot  Street  Prison,  St.  Louis. 
Here  a  friend  and  fellow-prisoner,  who  was  well  acquainted 
with  Judge  H.  R.  Gamble,  then  the  Governor  of  the  State, 
wrote  to  that  functionary,  detailing  the  facts  in  Mr.  Dines's 
•case — his  age,  his  devoted  piety,  his  long  service  as  a  minister, 
his  feeble  health,  his  dependent  family,  his  prudence,  his  quiet 
walk,  his  outrageous  treatment — suggesting  that  if  the  govern- 
ment must  have  sacrifice  and  not  mercy,  the  writer,  who  was 
young  and  stout,  asked  no  favors  for  himself,  and  was  willing 
to  endure  the  imprisonment,  but  entreating  the  judge  to  inter- 
fere for  Mr.  Dines's  release.  Gov.  Gamble  heeded  the  re- 
quest, and  secured  a  hearing  for  Mr.  Dines  before  the  provost- 
marshal,  who  immediately  released  Mr.  Dines  on  parole. 

The  evening  of  that  same  day  found  Mr.  Dines  at  his  home 
in  St.  Charles,  in  the  midst  of  as  happy  a  family  as  the  sun  ever 
shone  on.  Praise  and  thanksgiving  went  up  from  full,  grate- 
ful, glad  hearts  around  the  family  altar  that  night.  But  alas! 
some  son  of  Belial  had  informed  Gen.  Merrill  by  telegraph  of 
Mr.  Dines's  return  on  parole,  and  next  morning  before  break- 
fast a  telegram  came  from  Merrill  ordering  Mr.  Dines  to  leave 
the  district  in  twenty -four  hours.  Mr.  Dines  was  compelled  to 
obey,  and  for  more  than  eight  months  was  kept  an  exile  from 
his  home  and  flock. 

REV.  JAMES  PENN. 

No  member  of  this  Conference  has  made  a  bet- 
ter record  and  has  served  the  Church  longer  and 
more  faithfully  than  this  venerable  man  of  God. 
His  voice  has  been  heard  in  the  proclamation  of 


138  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

the  gospel  through  North-east  Missouri  and  else- 
where for  scores  of  years,  and  sinners  by  hun- 
dreds, if  not  by  thousands,  have  been  induced  to 
forsake  their  sins  and  seek  the  salvation  of  their 
souls.  He  is  still  publishing  to  a  lost  world  the 
glad  tidings  of  great  joy.  How  bright  will  be  his 
crown  of  rejoicing  in  glory  sparkling  with  so  many 
stars  of  happy  souls  saved  forever  through  his  in- 
strumentality ! 

Nor  is  this  all.  He  has  quadrupled  his  useful- 
ness by  giving  to  the  Church  four  clerical  sons 
who  have  for  many  years  followed  the  noble  ex- 
ample of  their  worthy  sire  in  the  Christian  minis- 
try. They  seem  to  have  inherited  the  virtuous 
qualities  and  religious  character  of  their  consecrat- 
ed father.  The  field  of  their  usefulness  has  been 
extended.  While  preaching  the  gospel  of  salva- 
tion in  its  purity,  simplicity,  and  power  throughout 
the  country,  great  success  has  attended  their  min- 
isterial labors,  and  eternity  alone  can  reveal  the 
amount  of  good  accomplished  by  that  priestly 
family. 

We  would  suppose,  on  account  of  his  advanced 
age,  his  quiet  and  peaceable  disposition,  his  purity 
and  innocency  of  life,  his  devotion  to  the  cause  of 
morality  and  religion,  that  he  would  have  escaped 
the  troubles  of  the  war.  But  no;  he  must  suffer 
the  ban  of  being  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher, 
irrespective  of  position  or  character.  The  ordeal 
through  which  he  passed  has  been  given  to  the 
public  by  himself  as  follows: 


1863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  139 

First,  I  was  arrested  in  August,  1862,  and  carried  to  Keokuk, 
la.,  and  there  detained  about  a  week.  As  there  were  no  well- 
founded  charges  against  me,  I  was  released. 

Second,  in  August,  1863,  I  held  a  meeting  in  Williamstown, 
Mo.  There  were  present  at  that  meeting  a  minister  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  whose  name,  I  believe,  was  Moody.  On  Sunday 
morning,  during  prayer-meeting,  this  man,  while  we  were 
kneeling  in  prayer,  arose  and  began  to  read  in  a  very  loud  tone 
of  voice.  The  people  got  off  their  knees.  The  man  who  had 
thus  disturbed  an  unoffending  company  of  praying  men  and 
women  was  armed,  as  were  some  fifteen  others  whom  he  brought 
with  him.  I  walked  toward  the  door,  and  the  congregation  fol- 
lowed me  and  took  a  position  in  the  street.  1  then  preached  to 
a  large  concourse  of  people,  the  armed  minister  and  his  valiant 
company  retaining  possession  of  the  house.  I  continued  the 
meeting  until  the  next  Sabbath,  when  this  preacher  with  his 
armed  band  came  again  and  drove  us  out;  of  the  house  the  sec- 
ond time.  I  preached  out-of-doors  as  on  the  preceding  Sab- 
bath. The  meeting  resulted  in  much  good,  there  being  about 
forty  accessions  to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South. 

On  another  occasion  flags  were  brought  and  placed  on  and 
around  the  pulpit,  and  a  company  of  armed  men  sat  near  to 
prevent  any  one  from  taking  them  down.  Seeing  that  this,  did 
not  deter  us  from  the  discharge  of  Christian  duty,  a  lot  of 
wicked  men  raised  a  fight  and  fought  like  savages,  so  we  were 
compelled  to  leave  the  house  and  ceased  to  preach  at  that  place. 
Moody  was  asked  why  he  did  so.  His  reply  was :  "  Because  I 
can."  He  is  now,  I  believe,  a  minister  of  good  standing  in  the 
M.  E.  Church,  but  many  responsible  people  regard  him  as  a 
very  bad  man. 

At  Winchester,  Mo.,  we  had  a  very  good  house  of  worship, 
but  they  ran  us  out  as  they  did  at  Williamstown,  until  our  peo- 
ple were  unwilling  to  attend  divine  services  in  the  town.  Then 
the  house  was  almost  destroyed,  so  that  we  had  no  place  there 
in  which  to  worship. 

They  seized  our  house  in  La  Grange,  a  Mr.  Stewart  and  others 
of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  being  the  chief  actors  in  this  mat- 
ter. After  three  years  they  relinquished  their  hold  upon  that 
splendid  house. 

In  addition  to  all  this  I  have  suffered  personal  wrongs,  in  va- 


140  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

rious  ways,  at  the  hands  of  these  people;  but  I  have  tried  to 
keep  a  conscience  void  of  offense  toward  God  and  men.  Their 
wrong-doing  is  upon  themselves.  I  leave  them  to  be  judged  by 
him  who  is  too  wise  to  err  and  too  good  to  do  wrong.  May  he 
forgive  the  wrong  done! 

Thus  speaks  as  true  a  man  as  ever  lived. 

REV.  JESSE  BIRD. 

This  good  man  was  for  many  years  a  standard- 
bearer  in  the  Church,  and  was  a  faithful  member 
of  the  Missouri  Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South; 
was  distinguished  for  his  integrity  and  unswerving 
fidelity  to  the  cause  of  Christ.  He  was  an  able 
defender  of  the  doctrines  of  his  Church,  of  which 
he  had  a  clear,  correct,  and  intelligent  understand- 
ing. His  preaching  was  positive,  forcible,  and  im- 
pressive. His  favorite  themes  or  topics  were  the 
essential  doctrines  of  the  gospel,  which  he  present- 
ed "with  a  telling  effect.  He  was  a  solid  man — 
nothing  superficial,  artificial,  or  fanciful  about  him. 
Indeed,  he  was  the  embodiment  of  a  living  Chris- 
tianity. Yet  withal  he  was  a  Southern  Method- 
ist preacher,  and  must  come  under  the  condemna- 
tion of  those  who  made  it  their  one  business  to 
persecute  Southern  Methodist  preachers.  But  let 
him  speak  for  himself: 

In  the  fall  of  1861  I  was  appointed  by  the  President  of  the 
Missouri  Conference  to  the  St.  Joseph  District.  On  my  first 
round  I  went  to  my  quarterly  meeting  for  Rockport  Circuit,  at 
Spencer's  Chapel,  in  Atchison  County.  Arriving  at  the  chapel 
at  ii  o'clock,  November  9,  I  found  that  a  pole  nad  been  raised 
by  the  door  with  a  rope  fastened  to  it,  with  the  purpose  of  hoist- 
ing a  flag.  There  was  no  one  present.  I  waited  a  little,  and 


1863-64.  Missouri  Conference.  141 

saw  two  men  approaching.  They  informed  me  that  a  burial 
was  going  on  in  the  neighborhood ;  that  the  preaching  was  post- 
poned until  3  o'clock. 

In  the  evening  I  returned  to  the  church  in  company  with  a 
few  persons.  As  we  approached  the  house  I  saw  two  men 
hoisting  the  flag  in  great  haste.  Fastening  the  rope  as  quick 
as  possible,  they  ran  and  hid  themselves  inside  a  field.  Coming 
up  to  the  house,  and  seeing  what  had  been  done,  I  declined  go- 
ing, stating  that  I  would  preach  under  no  political  flag;  that  I 
should  not  mix  my  religion  with  politics.  I  was  invited  to 
preach  at  a  private  house,  and  I  did  so.  I  was  not  interrupted 
again  until  on  my  second  round. 

On  the  6th  of  February,  1862, 1  commenced  a  quarterly  meet- 
ing at  Oregon,  Holt  County.  The  meeting  went  on  quietly  and 
properly  until  Monday  morning,  when  the  flag  was  hoisted  over 
the  door  of  the  Church.  I  again  declined  going  in  for  the  same 
reasons.  In  the  course  of  two  or  three  hours  I  was  arrested, 
cursed,  and  abused  in  various  ways,  and  threatened  by  some 
men  who  styled  themselves  soldiers.  I  was  then  sent  in  charge 
of  two  young  men  to  Forest  City,  and  requested  to  "take  the 
oath,"  which  I  also  declined.  But  in  order  to  get  off  and  out  of 
the  hands  of  the  law,  I  agreed  to  go  before  a  magistrate  and 
take  a  civil  oath  to  observe  the  Constitution  and  laws.  From 
Oregon  I  returned  home  and  found  a  notice  in  my  post-office  at 
Rochester  from  Ben  Loan,  the  commander  at  St.  Joseph,  re- 
quiring me  to  appear  before  him  immediately.  I  went  down 
and  inquired  for  what  purpose  he  sent  for  me,  when  he  replied: 
"You  are  not  to  preach  any  more  in  this  district."  "Is  this 
all  ?  "  I  inquired.  "  You  must  go  and  take  the  oath,"  he  replied. 
I  informed  him  that  I  should  not  take  the  oath;  that  he  could 
put  me  in  prison  or  banish  me  from  the  State,  as  he  had  others. 
He  immediately  made  out  an  order  for  me  to  leave  the  State 
within  thirty  daysp.  This  was  done  in  the  City  of  St.  Joseph 
February  14,  1862.  I  was  not  restricted  to  any  particular 
bounds.  The  ground  was  then  covered  with  snow  and  ice  to 
the  depth  of  six  or  eight  inches.  I  had  no  money  to  bear  ex- 
penses, save  about  fifty  dollars.  I  gave  about  two  prices  for  a 
wagon,  put  what  I  could  in  it,  and,  leaving  my  house  and  crop 
of  corn  in  the  prairie,  I  started  on  a  cold,  stormy  day,  with  my 
wife  in  feeble  health,  to  go  I  knew  not  whither,  and  that  for  no. 


142  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

other  reason  than  that  I  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher 
and  would  not  swear  falsely. 

This  move  made  it  necessary  to  sacrifice  my  little  grain  and 
stock  my  little  boys  had  worked  for,  together  with  our  furni- 
ture and  a  good  portion  of  my  library.  I  was  accompanied  by 
my  daughter  and  two  little  sons,  and  also  by  Benjamin  Bird, 
his  wife,  and  two  young  children.  We  started  South,  and  trav- 
eled four  davs,  reaching  the  river  opposite  Lexington ;  and 
finding  the  ice  giving  way,  and  there  being  no  boat,  we  turned 
up  the  river  to  Camden,  Ray  County,  stopping  at  Brother 
Menefee's,  a  most  excellent  family,  where  we  remained  some 
three  or  four  days.  Leaving  Camden,  we  went  up  the  bottom 
to  a  point  opposite  Napoleon,  in  La  Fayette  County,  where  we 
remained  in  camp  two  or  three  days,  when,  the  ice  clearing 
away,  we  crossed  the  Missouri  River  and  proceeded  through  cold 
and  storm  until  we  had  passed  the  town  of  Clifton,  in  Henry 
County. 

Here  we  met  some  men  who  told  us,  as  others  had  the  day 
before,  that  we  could  not  proceed  beyond  the  Osage.  The 
Jayhawkers  and  Home  Guards  were  robbing  all  who  attempted 
to  go  through.  We  turned  around  and  came  back  to  La  Fay- 
ette County,  and  finding  an  empty  house  near  Greenton, 
stopped  and  spent  the  spring  and  summer  there. 

In  a  few  days  I  went  down  to  Lexington,  saw  the  command- 
er of  that  post,  and  got  a  sound  cursing  for  my  trouble.  Re- 
turning to  my  family  and  finding  the  people  of  the  neigh- 
borhood verv  kind  and  generous,  we  remained  until  the  latter 
part  of  August,  when  we  returned  to  our  home  in  Andrew 
County. 

I  will  say  nothing  of  my  trials  from  that  time  till  the  close  of 
the  war,  except  that  I  preached  but  little.  A  part  of  this  time 
I  was  nominally  the  presiding  elder  of  St.  Joseph  District. 

About  Christmas,  1865,  I  was  employed*  by  the  presiding 
elder,  H.  H.  Hedgepeth,  to  take  charge  of  the  Savannah  Cir- 
cuit. I  commenced  my  work  immediatelv,  and  continued 
preaching  regularly  until  my  last  appointment  to  Savannah,  in 
August,  1866.  I  had  been  threatened  at  different  times  during 
the  summer  by  mobs,  and  sometimes  I  thought  it  quite  likely 
that  I  should  be  put  to  death  by  the  lawless  rabble,  but  I  was 
left  unmolested  until  I  was  about  to  finish  my  work  on  the  cir- 


1863-64-  Missouri  Conference.  143 

cuit.  On  Sunday  the  people  expected  an  interruption  while  I 
was  preaching,  but  all  continued  quiet  till  night.  While  in  the 
pulpit  I  noticed  some  men  come  in  and  whisper  to  each  other 
and  go  out,  and  presently  return.  When  the  services  closed  1 
heard  a  lady  say :  "  They  are  at  the  door."  I  quietly  walked 
out  and  went  to  my  room,  nobody  disturbing  me.  Next  morn- 
ing I  was  told  they  were  preparing  to  arrest  me. 

After  I  had  adjusted  my  affairs,  about  10  o'clock  I  went  home. 
Having  proceeded  about  two  hundred  yards,  I  saw  the  deputy 
sheriff  coming  at  full  speed.  Knowing  what  it  meant,  I  stopped 
until  he  came  up.  He  said  that  he  was  authorized  to  arrest  me. 
I  was  taken  before  a  justice  of  the  peace,  who  had  issued  the 
warrant  for  my  arrest,  upon  the  affidavit  of  one  of  the  party  that 
came  into  the  church  on  Sunday  night.  The  said  justice  in- 
quired if  I  pleaded  guilty  or  not  guilty  to  the  crime  of  preach- 
ing the  gospel  to  the  people,  in  violation  of  the  fundamental  law 
of  the  State  of  Missouri.  I  pleaded  guilty ;  whereupon  the  said 
officer  required  me  to  give  bond  for  my  appearance  at  the  next 
session  of  the  court,  which  I  declined  to  do.  Consequently  I  was 
taken  by  the  sheriff  of  Andrew  County  and  lodged  in  the  jail  of 
Buchanan  County,  in  the  city  of  St.  Joseph,  there  being  no  jail 
in  Andrew  County.  This  was  done  on  August  27,  1866.  I  re- 
mained in  prison  about  three  hours,  when  the  sheriff  of  Buchan- 
an County,  accompanied  by  Judge  Woodson  and  others,  of  St. 
Joseph,  came  and  opened  the  door  of  the  jail  and  let  me  out. 
On  Monday  following  the  Circuit  Court  of  Buchanan  County 
came  on,  and  the  judge  declining  to  try  the  case,  I  gave  bond 
for  my  appearance  at  the  next  term  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  An- 
drew County,  at  which  time  and  place  I  was  indicted  for  preach- 
ing the  gospel.  I  took  a  change  of  venue  to  Buchanan  County, 
and  before  the  sitting  of  the  court  the  decision  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States  had  set  aside  the  test  oath,  and  that 
ended  the  matter  with  me. 

Mr.  Bird  recognized  that  his  authority  to  preach 
the  gospel  was  divine ;  therefore,  that  no  human 
authority  had  any  right  to  interfere  with  it ;  and  it 
seems  that  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 
thought  the  same. 


144  Methodism  in  Missouri  1863-64. 

The  following  interesting  information  of  the  spir- 
itual state  of  the  Church  this  year  is  from  the  pen 
of  Rev.  F.  A.  Savage,  from  the  Canton  Press: 

I  shall  not  attempt  an  extended  notice  of  the  great  work 
which  God  has  wrought  within  the  bounds  of  our  Conference ; 
but  simply  give  a  brief  sketch.  I  term  it  a  great  work;  and 
when  we  consider  the  terrible  ordeal  through  which  our  coun- 
try is  passing,  and  the  dreadful  Civil  War  which  is  so  exten- 
sively raging,  and  the  consequent  distrust  and  alarm  that  every- 
where prevails,  it  is  truly  a  great  work.  Notwithstanding  the 
exciting  and  alarming  scenes  through  which  we  have  been 
passing,  and  by  which  we  have  been  surrounded,  yet  in  the 
main  we  have  peace  and  prosperity  in  all  our  borders,  and  God 
has  visited  many  of  our  charges  with  most  gracious  and  power- 
ful revivals.  This  is  a  matter  of  thanksgiving  and  praise  to 
God,  and  with  gratitude  to  him  do  I  record  it. 

1.  Hannibal  District.— In  this  district  are  Hannibal  and  Pal- 
myra   Stations.      Hydesburg    and    Monticello    Circuits    were 
blessed  with  interesting  and,  in   some  respects,  powerful   re- 
vivals.   These  seasons  of  refreshing  were  especially  beneficial 
to  the  Church  in  quickening  believers,  reclaiming  the  back- 
slidden, and  restoring  confidence  and  hope  in  reference  to  the 
future.     My  information  enables  me  to  state  that  within  the 
bounds  of  this  district  there  have  been  over  two  hundred  con- 
versions,  and   not   less   than   three   hundred   additions  to  the 
Church. 

2.  Bloomington  District. — A  number  of  the  charges   in   this 
district  have  received  most  gracious  outpourings  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.     Paris  and  Bloomington  Circuits  have  been  abundantly 
blessed.     Huntsville  has  shared  largely  in  the  revival  influence. 
There  have  been  about  as  many  conversions  and  additions  to 
the  Church  in  this  district  as  in  the  Hannibal.     In  reference  to 
the  revivals  on  Paris  Circuit  I  am  informed  by  letter  that  the 
work  was  extensive  and  powerful.     In  Callao,  on  Bloomington 
Circuit,  where  I  labored  with  the  brethren  several  days,  the 
work  was  manifestly  of  God.     At  Bloomington,  five  miles  dis- 
tant, the  work  was  equally  great. 

3.  Brunswick  District. — This  district  has  been   more   abun- 
dantly blessed  than  any  other  portion  of  our  work.     Indeed,  I 


1863-64.  Missouri  Conference.  145 

am  informed  that  the  work  has  been  most  extraordinary,  espe- 
cially that  on  Keytesville  Circuit,  in  Chariton  County.  One 
who  has  been  over  twenty  years  in  the  ministry,  and  who  has 
passed  through  many  revivals,  said  to  me:  "  In  all  the  course  of 
my  ministry  I  have  never  seen  more  clear  and  manifest  dis- 
plays of  the  presence  and  power  of  God  in  convictions  and  con- 
versions than  I  have  witnessed  in  these  revivals.''  It  would  be 
impossible  to  describe  them.  Such  was  the  divine  influence 
and  power  present  that  it  seemed  as  a  mighty  avalanche  bear- 
ing down  all  before  it.  The  gracious  influence  spread  from  ap- 
pointment to  appointment,  until  the  whole  country  seemed  one 
continued  flame  of  revival.  Glasgow  Station  and  Carrollton 
Circuit  have  been  greatly  blessed.  The  result  has  been  over 
four  hundred  conversions  and  additions  to  the  Church  in 
Keytesville  Circuit,  and  near  seven  hundred  in  the  district. 

4.  St.  Charles,  Fayette,  Gattatin,  Weston,and  St.  Joseph  Dis- 
tricts.— Of  these  districts  I  cannot  speak  with  confidence,  as  my 
opportunities  for  information  have  been  limited.  I  can  say, 
however,  fram  verbal  information,  that  several  of  these  dis- 
tricts, in  a  number  of  their  charges,  have  been  wonderfully 
blessed,  and  many  sinners  have  been  converted  and  added  to 
the  Church.  So  that  within  the  bounds  of  our  Conference  there 
have  been  over  fifteen  hundred  conversions  and  more  than  two 
thousand  additions  to  the  Church.  To  God  be  all  the  glory ! 

You  have  heard  the  outcry  against  our  Church  of  disorgan- 
ization, "rebel  concern,"  "gone  under,"  "played  out,"  etc.,  and 
also  the  prediction  that  our  Conference  would  never  assemble 
again  in  Missouri.  You  have  also  heard  the  terrible  bellowing 
of  the  great  "bull  of  Bashan,"  whose  fearful  roaring  in  sound- 
ing alarm  was  heard  throughout  the  land.  Notwithstanding  all 
this  our  Conference  did  assemble  in  Fulton,  on  the  I4th  of  Octo- 
ber, the  time  fixed  by  Bishop  Kavanaugh,  and  organized  under 
the  law  of  our  Discipline  on  the  i6th,  and  proceeded  to  businesss. 
We  had  a  very  pleasant,  harmonious,  and  profitable  session. 
Moreover  there  were  no  "plottings  or  treason  against  the 
State,"  nor  "measures  concocted  for  the  overthrow  of  the  gov- 
ernment," but  a  preamble,  and  resolutions,  and  pastoral  address 
were  by  a  rising  vote  unanimously  adopted,  in  which  we  avow 
our  fidelity  and  loyalty  to  the  government,  and  'enjoined  this 
as  a  cardinal  duty  upon  every  member.  We  also  declared  our 
10 


146  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1863-64. 

"  unqualified  disapprobation  and  censure  "  upon  any  of  our  min- 
isters who  have  been  involved  in  the  affairs  of  civil  polity  or 
politics. 

And  now  the  "Old  Ship"  still  floats.  Her  broad  pennant  is 
still  to  the  breeze;  Judah's  Lion  is  her  captain,  her  decks  are 
crowded  with  happy  sailors,  her  keel  and  rigging  all  sound,  her 
sails  all  unfurled;  and  may  God  give  her  a  successful  voyage 
and  bring  her  safely  into  the  heavenly  port! 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

No  Published  Minutes  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  This 
Year — Forty-eighth  Session  of  the  Missouri  Conference  at 
Mexico — Minute  Business — Preachers  Received  Their  Ap- 
pointments— Imminent  Danger  Threatens  Them  in  Every 
Direction — Their  Trust  Is  in  God — Reign  of  Terror — Cruel 
Murder  of  Rev.  Thomas  Johnson — Trials  of  Martin  L.  Eads 
As  Given  by  Himself — Rev.  W.  M.  Newland  Arrested — 
Church  at  La  Grange— Rev.  J.  H.  Pritchett  and  His  Work— 
The  Palmyra  Meeting  Formed  an  Era  in  the  History  of 
Southern  Methodism. 

THERE  are  no  published  minutes  of  the  St. 
Louis  Annual  Conference  for  this  year. 
Those  of  the  Missouri  Conference  are  very  meager 
and  confined  to  the  minute  business  of  the  Confer- 
ence. 

The  forty-eighth  session  of  the  Missouri  Annual 
Conference  was  held  in  Mexico,  Mo.,  September 
14,  1864. 

In  the  absence  of  the  bishop,  Andrew  Monroe 
was  called  to  the  chair  by  the  Conference,  and 
presided  during  the  session.  John  D.  Vincil  was 
elected  Secretary. 

J.  S.  Allen,  D.  R.  Smith,  Thomas  Penn,  J.  A. 
Mumpower,  and  B.  F.  Zumwalt  were  admitted  on 
trial.  S.  J.  Huffaker  and  James  O.  Swinney  re- 
mained on  trial.  John  W.  Adkisson  and  Samuel 
Alexander  were  admitted  into  full  connection,  and 
were  elected  and  ordained  deacons.  J.  R.  Tay- 

(147) 


148  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

lor,  W.  W.  McMurry,  and  E.  H.  Hudson  were 
elders,  but  not  ordained,  as  there  was  no  bishop 
present.  T.  Dines,  George  Fenton,  Jesse  Fau- 
bion,  C.  W.  Pritchett,  W.  M.  Sutton,  J.  R.  Down- 
ing, N.  P.  Halsey,  L.  T.  Catlin,  Walter  Toole, 
Thomas  Hurst,  Samuel  Alexander,  James  L. 
Smith,  P.  M.  Pinckard,  George  Penn,  William 
Penn,  William  F.  Bell,  Alex.  Spencer,  and  W. 
Warren  were  supernumerary.  John  F.  Young, 
D.  C.  Blackwell,  Martin  L.  Eads,  and  William  M. 
Wood  were  superannuated. 

It  was  with  great  difficulty  that  the  ministers 
could  meet  to  hold  an  annual  session  of  the  Con- 
ference while  the  whole  country  was  in  commo- 
tion. Having  received  their  appointments,  they 
returned  home  with  anxious  hearts  about  the  re- 
sults of  the  ensuing  Conference  year.  Looking 
from  a  human  stand-point  the  prospects  were  very 
discouraging.  Their  own  lives  were  in  jeopardy 
all  the  time,  not  knowing  what  day  or  what  night 
might  be  their  last,  not  knowing  when  the  desper- 
adoes might  visit  their  homes,  burn  their  houses, 
and  leave  their  families  in  the  world  without  any 
thing  upon  which  to  subsist;  for  such  instances 
were  frequent  and  occurring  in  different  parts  of 
the  State.  Yet  their  trust  was  in  God,  who  had 
brought  them  safely  thus  far  through  the  war,  and 
they  felt  encouraged  to  believe  that  as  he  had  been 
with  them  in  the  past  so  he  would  continue  with  them 
in  the  future.  He  had  given  them  success  in  their 
past  ministry,  had  accompanied  the  word  preached 


1864-65-  Missouri  Conference.  149 

by  them  with  the  power  and  demonstration  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  making  it  "  quick  and  power- 
ful, sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword,  piercing 
even  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  soul  and  spirit,  of 
the  joints  and  marrow,  and  a  discerner  of  the 
thoughts  and  intents  of  the  heart."  Under  their 
preaching  sinners  had  been  convicted,  penitents 
converted,  and  believers  strengthened  and  estab~ 
lished,  while  the  work  of  saving  souls  was  to  them 
dearer  than  life  itself. 

When  a  civil  war  reaches  its  culmination  the 
very  elements,  infernal  and  supernal,  seem  to  col- 
lide— wrong  against  right,  vice  against  virtue,  error 
against  truth,  wickedness  against  righteousness, 
atheism  against  the  Bible,  and  the  kingdom  of 
Satan  against  the  kingdom  of  Christ.  No  orator 
could  describe,  no  artist  could  paint  the  terrific 
scene,  the  fearful  tragedy  in  Missouri  during  "  the 
reign  of  terror."  The  very  blackness  of  darkness 
covered  the  heavens,  obscuring  sun,  moon,  and 
stars;  and  the  earth,  crimsoned  with  human  blood, 
was  draped  in  mourning  and  death.  May  God 
save  our  glorious  country  and  government  from 
another  civil  war ! 

If  the  reader  thinks  we  have  drawn  the  picture 
in  colors  too  dark,  let  him  read  the  following  nar- 
rative of  the  persecution  and  death  of 

REV.  THOMAS  JOHNSON, 

a  patriot,  a  philanthropist,  a  Christian,  and  a  bene- 
diction to  the  Church  and  to  the  State.  We  knew 


150  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

him  when  a  boy,  was  taught  by  him  in  school,  and 
never  knew  a  better  man.  But  we  have  not  the 
space  to  give  a  portraiture  of  his  character  here — 
would  direct  the  attention  of  the  reader  to  the  fol- 
lowing narrative : 

Thomas  Johnson  was  born  in  Nelson  County,  Va.,  A.D.  1804. 
In  the  fall  of  1825  he  emigrated  with  his  parents  to  Missouri. 
In  September,  1826,  he  was  received  on  trial  into  the  Missouri 
Conference  during  the  session  of  the  Conference  which  was 
held  at  McKendree  Chapel,  Cape  Girardeau  County,  Mo.,  Bish- 
op Roberts  presiding,  and  John  Scripps  acting  as  Secretary. 
The  Conference,  which  at  that  time  embraced  all  the  State  of 
Missouri  and  Arkansas,  numbered  just  twenty  traveling  preach- 
ers and  three  thousand  three  hundred  and  sixty-four  members, 
all  told. 

With  Mr.  Johnson  there  were  also  admitted  on  trial  into  the 
Conference  this  year  John  Curitan,  Parker  Snedecor,  John 
Wood,  and  John  W.  Yorke. 

Mr.  Johnson's  first  appointment  was  to  Mount  Prairie,  in  the 
Arkansas  District,  with  Jesse  Hale  as  his  presiding  elder.  The 
next  year  he  was  returned  to  Mount  Prairie,  which  was  consid- 
ered in  those  days  quite  a  compliment  to  a  young  preacher. 
At  the  Conference  of  1828,  held  at  the  old  Fayette  Camp- 
ground, Bishop  Soule,  President,  and  James  Bankson,  Secre- 
tary, Mr.  Johnson  was  admitted  into  full  connection,  with  Parker 
Snedecor,  J.  W.  Yorke,  and  A.  Norfleet,  ordained  deacon  and 
appointed  to  Fishing  River,  with  Jesse  Green,  presiding  elder, 
and  John  Trotter,  junior  preacher.  The  next  year  he  was  sent 
to  Buffalo.  At  the  Conference  of  1830,  in  St.  Louis,  Bi.shop 
Roberts  ordained  him  elder  and  sent  him  to  the  "  Shawnee  Mis- 
sion." This  was  his  first  appearance  on  the  border  and  among 
the  people  with  whom  so  many  years  of  his  subsequent  life 
were  spent.  The  next  year  he  was  appointed  to  what  was  called 
the  "  Kansas  Mission,"  with  his  brother,  William  Johnson, 
junior  preacher. 

In  1832  the  "General  Minutes"  contain  the  following:  "In- 
dian Mission  District,  Thomas  Johnson,  Superintendent.  Shaw- 
nee  Mission  and  School,  Thomas  Johnson  and  Edward  T.  Peery." 


1864-65-  Missouri  Conference.  151 

In  1833  he  was  again  appointed  to  the  Indian  Mission  District, 
and  his  brother  William  to  the  Shawnee  Mission  and  school. 
He  was  continued  as  superintendent  of  the  Indian  Mission  Dis- 
trict and  in  connection  with  the  Shawnee  Mission  and  school 
until  1841.  For  several  years  after  this  date  he  filled  other  im- 
portant appointments,  and  labored  in  other  parts  of  the  vast 
territory  then  occupied  and  cultivated  by  the  Missouri  Confer- 
ence. 

He  was  frequently  and  extensively  spoken  of  in  connection 
with  the  highest  office  and  honors  in  the  gift  of  the  Church;  and 
yet  he  was  so  quiet,  so  humble,  so  approachable,  and  so  generous 
in  his  feelings  for  the  low  and  the  poor  and  the  suffering  that,  with 
his  benevolent  countenance  and  his  frank,  open  manners,  the 
savage  Indian  was  awed  into  reverence,  the  lonelv  wavfarer  felt 
drawn  toward  him,  the  poor,  the  sick,  the  dying  found  him  a 
counselor,  a  friend,  a  brother,  and  the  dirtiest  and  lowest  Indian 
child  learned  to  rejoice  in  his  coming  and  hail  with  many  ex- 
pressions of  pleasure  the  notice  of  the  "  Big  Chief,"  a  patro- 
nymic which  the  tribes  gave  him  wherever  he  was  known 

He  kept  himself  aloof,  with  great  propriety  and  prudence, 
from  the  Missouri-Kansas  broils  of  1856,  and  when  the  Civil 
War  broke  out  in  1861  he  was  found  loyally  and  positively  on 
the  side  of  the  Union.  He  took  no  part  in  politics,  and  deter- 
mined to  keep  out  of  the  war;  but  a  man  so  well,  so  long,  and 
so  extensively  known,  living  on  the  very  borders  of  strife,  and 
between  the  two  opposing  sections  as  it  were,  could  not  keep 
from  the  public  nor  did  he  care  to  conceal  his  sentiments  on 
the  great  issues  that  were  convulsing  the  country  from  one 
end  to  the  other.  He  opposed  secession  on  the  one  hand  and 
coercion  on  the  other.  Yet  he  loved  the  Constitution  and  the 
Union  of  our  fathers,  and  rather  than  see  the  one  destroyed 
and  the  other  dismembered  he  would  favor  a  resort  to  arms. 
His  loyalty  to  the  government  was  never  called  in  question, 
nor  was  his  love  for  and  loyalty  to  the  Church  of  his  choice — 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South — ever  doubted.  He  was  a  living  and 
sublime  refutation  of  that  oft-repeated  falsehood  that  Southern 
Methodism  and  secession  were  one,  and  that  a  Southern  Meth- 
odist preacher  was,  per  se,  a  rebel  and  a  traitor.  Mr.  Johnson 
loved  the  Union  of  these  States,  and  was  loyally  and  earnestly 
and  notoriously  in  favor  of  its  preservation;  but  he  loved  his 


152  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

Church,  her  discipline,  her  doctrines,  her  principles,  and  was 
just  as  loyally,  earnestly,  and  notoriously  in  favor  of  the  pres- 
ervation of  her  distinctive  identity.  He  was  equally  opposed 
to  secession  in  the  South  and  abolition  fanaticism  in  the  North, 
and  he  believed  that  they  were  alike  dangerous  to  the  peace 
and  safety  of  the  country — that  the  ultimate  of  either  would 
break  up  the  government  bequeathed  to  us  by  the  patriot  fathers 
of  '76  and  '87. 

With  such  sentiments  it  was  not  surprising  that  he  was  ha- 
rassed first  by  one  party  and  then  by  the  other  party  during  the 
early  part  of  the  war.  He  was  often  required  to  provide  for 
and  feed  soldiers;  and  his  horses,  wagons,  feed,  and  provisions 
of  every  kind  were  pressed  into  the  service  of  the  army. ' 

At  this  time  he  was  living  on  his  own  farm  and  in  his  own 
elegant  residence,  two  miles  south-west  of  Westport,  in  Jack- 
son County,  Mo.,  three  miles  from  the  Kansas  State  line,  and 
five  miles  from  the  old  Shawnee  Mission,  which  had  ceased  to 
be  a  manual  labor  school  for  the  Indians.  The  whole  property 
had  been  donated  to  Mr.  Johnson  by  the  Indians,  and  purchased 
by  him  from  the  government,  and  was  now  occupied  as  a  resi- 
dence by  his  eldest  son. 

After  the  first  two  years  of  the  war  Mr.  Johnson  was  mo- 
lested very  little,  and  yet  such  was  the  reign  of  terror  along 
the  border  that  he  never  felt  entirely  secure.  So  many  good 
men  had  been  murdered,  and  so  much  propertv  had  been  de- 
stroyed, and  panic  and  consternation  had  been  so  often  created 
during  the  war  in  the  country,  and  he  had  passed  through  it  all 
so  safely,  compared  with  thousands  of  others,  that  by  the  close 
of  1864,  after  Price's  army  had  made  the  boldest  and  last  raid 
into  Missouri  and  had  passed  away  from  the  borders  of  Kansas, 
he  began  to  feel  pretty  secure. 

His  suspicions  of  foul  play  had  often  been  aroused,  but  just  as 
often  allayed.  During  the  Christmas  holidays  that  closed  up 
the  year  1864  he  was  again  induced  to  believe  that  he  had  ene- 
mies who  might  possibly  be  plotting  his  destruction;  but  who 
they  were,  and  why  they  wished  to  molest  him,  he  had  no 
means  of  knowing.  His  suspicions  again  passed  away,  while  he 
retained  his  caution. 

On  January  i,  1865,  and  while  the  vounger  members  of  the 
family  were  from  home  enjoying  the  festivities  incident  to  the 


1864-65-  Missouri  Conference.  153 

day,  a  squad  of  militia  rode  up  to  the  house,  dismounted,  and 
walked  in  to  warm  (as  they  said),  for  the  weather  was  bitter 
cold.  It  was  nearly  night,  and  Mr.  Johnson,  his  wife,  one  son, 
and  two  little  girls  composed  the  family  circle  that  evening. 
The  soldiers  were  civil  and  pleasant,  and  sat  around  the  fire  un- 
til nearly  1 1  o'clock  at  night,  when  they  arose,  bowed  them- 
selves out,  and  rode  away.  Mr.  Johnson  felt  relieved,  had  fam- 
ily worship,  and  all  retired.  Just  at  midnight,  and  before  Mr. 
Johnson  had  fallen  asleep,  he  was  roused  by  the  tramp  of  horses, 
the  clashing  of  sabers,  and  the  voices  of  men  at  the  gate.  He  arose, 
and  saw  through  the  window  thirty  mounted  men.  They  first 
asked  the  way  to  Kansas  City,  five  miles  distant.  They  then 
asked  if  they  could  come  in  and  warm.  He  told  them  there 
was  no  fire,  and  his  family  were  all  in  bed.  They  then  wanted 
water.  He  told  them  where  the  cistern  was.  By  this  time  a 
number  of  them  had  dismounted  and  walked  up  to  the  porch, 
Mr.  Johnson  meanwhile  remaining  in  the  hall,  with  the  door 
opened  just  enough  for  him  to  put  his  head  out  and  talk  to  them, 
*n  dishabille.  When  he  saw  them  approaching,  after  so  many 
expressed  wants,  he  feared  that  they  meant  mischief,  and  he 
went  in  and  shut  the  door.  They  then  demanded  admission, 
and  began  to  force  the  door  in.  They  swore  that  if  the  door 
was  not  opened  they  would  break  it  down,  and  just  as  Mr.  John- 
son turned  the  key  to  lock  the  door  they  fired,  the  balls  passing 
through  the  door,  and  one  of  them  taking  effect  in  the  region  of 
the  heart.  He  sunk  down  speechless,  and  in  a  few  minutes  ex- 
pired in  the  arms  of  his  grief-stricken  wife.  He  never  spoke 
after  the  fatal  shot.  The  fiendish  murderers  still  demanded  en- 
trance. They  were  refused.  They  tried  to  break  down  the 
door,  fired  several  shots  into  the  house,  and  finally  set  the  house 
on  fire.  The  heroic  woman  firmly  maintained  her  rights,  and 
protected  the  lifeless  body  of  her  loved  husband,  as  well  as  the 
sacred  shrine  of  her  cherished  home,  from  the  sacrilege  and 
profanation  of  a  brutal  soldiery.  She  put  the  fire  out,  and  main- 
tained herself  in  her  own  home. 

The  soldiers,  satisfied  with  their  bloody  work,  or  defeated  in 
their  efforts  to  commit  other  outrages,  mounted  and  rode  away, 
leaving  to  a  darkened  home  and  a  broken-hearted  widow  the 
legacy  of  a  martvred  minister  of  Jesus.* 

*Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


154  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

Murderers  seek  the  hour  of  midnight,  when  good 
and  honest  people  are  sound  asleep  in  their  quiet 
homes,  to  perpetrate  their  inhuman  and  diabolical 
atrocities — the  darkest  hour  for  the  darkest  deeds. 
Demons  as  they  were,  they  could  not  commit  such 
an  outrage  in  the  light  of  day;  they  could  not  face 
the  open,  frank,  majestic,  awe-inspiring  counte- 
nance of  that  good,  great,  grand  man,  whom  they 
so  brutally  murdered  at  midnight.  One  look  from 
him  in  the  daylight  would  have  made  those  thirty 
armed  and  equipped  men  skulk  away  self-con- 
demned and  confounded. 

REV.  MARTIN  L.  EADS. 

This  generous  and  noble-hearted  gentleman  and 
Christian  minister  possessed  those  sterling  virtues 
that  constitute  a  good  moral  character,  and  was 
noted  for  the  soundness  of  his  principles — his  in- 
flexible integrity.  Let  the  reader  add  the  Chris- 
tian graces  to  these  moral  qualities,  and  he  can 
form  a  very  correct  idea  of  him  concerning  whom 
we  are  writing.  He  may  see  his  true  character  in 
the  following  account,  given  by  himself  in  a  letter 
to  his  friend,  Mr.  Pinckard,  of  his  experience  in 
time  of  the  war: 

I  have  been  wandering  up  and  down  in  this  world  for  more 
than  forty  years,  trying  to  preach  Christ's  gospel  to  my  fellow- 
men.  I  have  alwavs  been  an  ardent  lover  of  popular  liberty 
and  a  great  admirer  of  the  free  institutions  of  our  common  coun- 
try. I  have  often  devoutly  thanked  Almighty  God,  on  my 
knees,  in  the  pulpit,  and  around  the  family  altar,  for  the  sacred 
privilege  of  worshiping  God  "  under  my  own  vine  and  fig-tree, 
none  daring  to  molest  or  make  us  afraid."  And  as  I  have  wit- 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  155 

nessed  the  rise  and  progress  of  Christianity  and  liberal  princi- 
ples in  this  country,  I  never  conceived  the  thought  that  I  should 
live  to  see  the  day  when  those  liberal  principles  would  be  vio- 
lated, and  the  progress  of  the  gospel  impeded  and  trammeled  by 
an  iron-clad  oath  which  no  Christian  minister  of  the  gospel 
could  take,  according  to  my  view,  without  doing  violence  to  his 
conscience  and  prostituting  the  sacred  office  of  the  Christian 
ministry  to  corrupt  political  party  ends.  Yet  I  have  indeed  lived 
to  see  it.  In  September,  1865,  Constable  Glenn  came  to  my 
house,  with  a  writ  for  me  to  appear  before  Esquire  Aubry,  of 
Wellsville,  to  answer  to  the  charge  of  preaching  the  gospel 
without  taking  the  oath.  When  I  appeared  before  him  he  re- 
quired me  to  take  an  oath  and  sign  a  bond,  both  of  which  I  re- 
fused to  do.  Esquire  Aubry  insisted  on  it,  though  in  a  mild  and 
gentlemanly  manner.  I  told  him  that  I  was  seventy-four  years 
of  age,  and  before  I  would  do  it  I  would  spend  my  few  remain- 
ing days  in  jail.  The  reason  I  acted  thus  was  because  I  could 
not  take  the  oath  without  doing  great  violence  to  my  conscience. 
I  could  never  have  gone  before  a  congregation  to  preach  the 
gospel  with  a  commission  from  a  County  Court  that  supplanted 
a  commission  from  the  "  King  of  kings,"  under  which  I  had 
been  preaching  for  more  than  forty  years.  During  my  trial  a 
Rev.  Mr.  Dowler,  of  the  Northern  Methodist  Church,  who  was 
the  instigator  of  my  arrest  without  any  provocation,  said  to  me: 
"  Mr.  Eads,  do  you  know  that  I  am  an  officer  of  the  govern- 
ment?" I  simply  replied  to  him  by  saying  that  I  thought  the 
government  had  made  a  poor  selection  in  an  officer.  There 
seemed,  after  refusing  to  take  the  oath,  no  alternative  but  to  go 
to  jail.  I  was  on  the  eve  of  starting  to  Conference  when  I  was 
arrested.  I  suggested  to  the  esquire  to  wait  until  I  had  returned 
from  Conference,  to  which  he  readily  acceded. 

On  my  return  from  Conference  I  started  to  report  myself  to 
Esquire  Aubry,  according  to  promise.  I  overtook  Constable 
Glenn  on  the  way  there,  by  whom  I  sent  the  word  that  I  was  of 
the  same  mind — I  could  not  take  the  oath — and  that  he  might  is- 
sue his  mittimus  as  soon  as  he  pleased.  A  few  days  after  this,  in 
Montgomery  City,  Constable  Glenn  came  up  to  me,  and  said: 
"  Mr.  Eads,  I  suppose  nothing  more  will  be  done  with  that  mat- 
ter." Why  they  did  not  enforce  the  law  against  me  I  know  not. 

M.  L.  EADS. 


156  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

REV.  W.  M.  NEWLAND. 
As  there  are  two  kinds  of  preaching,  so  there 
are  two  classes  of  preachers,  differing  essentially 
and  in  many  respects  from  each  other.  One  class 
are  known  as  popular  preachers,  by  which  we 
mean  those  who  are  preaching  for  worldly  popu- 
larity— for  the  praise  of  men.  Their  object  is  to 
build  up  a  reputation  for  superior  talents  and  pul- 
pit oratory,  to  be  among  those  whose  names  are  in 
all  the  newspapers,  and  are  made  the  topic  of  con- 
versation in  all  the  circles  of  society.  Their  special 
aim  is  to  be  in  favor  with  the  influential,  the  rich, 
the  great,  the  rulers  of  the  synagogues,  to  whom 
they  look  for  their  appointments  and  special  favors. 
The  other  class  are  honest,  conscientious  men, 
and  preach  because  the  love  of  Christ  constrains 
them ;  and  they  feel  that  not  to  preach  would  be 
worse  than  death  itself.  "Woe  is  unto  me,  if  I 
preach  not  the  gospel,"  which  woe  means  the 
loss  of  the  soul,  and  banishment  from  the  presence 
of  God  and  the  glory  of  his  power  forever.  Their 
object  being  to  save  souls,  they  preach  in  the  pow- 
er and  demonstration  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  To  this 
class  our  lamented  Brother  Newland  belonged. 

O 

He  was  a  prominent  member  of  the  Missouri 
Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South;  a  sound  theo- 
logian, and  an  able  expounder  of  the  word  of  God. 
He  filled  various  positions  in  the  Church  success- 
fully, but  did  not  escape  persecution.  The  follow- 
ing notice  of  his  arrest  appeared  in  the  Canton 
Press  October  7,  1865: 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  157 

ARRESTED. — We  learn  from  a  communication  in  the  Palmyra 
Spectator  that  Rev.  Mr.  Newland,  presiding  elder  of  the  Hanni- 
bal District,  was  arrested  at  Newark  on  Sunday,  the  2d  instant, 
at  the  close  of  sacramental  service,  and  held  to  answer  at  the 
ensuing  term  of  the  Circuit  Court  in  Knox  County,  for  exercis- 
ing the  function  of  his  sacred  office  without  having  taken  and 
filed  the  oath  of  loyalty.  The  arrest  appears  to  have  been  made 
at  the  instigation  of  a  son  of  a  Presbyterian  elder  at  that  place, 
whose  name  is  not  given  in  the  communication  referred  to. 

The  Sabbath  seemed  to  be  their  favorite  day  for 
arresting  preachers,  thus  desecrating  the  sanctua- 
ry and  disturbing  the  worship  of  God  in  his  own 
house  and  on  his  holy  day. 

CHURCH  AT  LA  GRANGE. 

This  is  an  unusually  interesting  case,  and  shows 
how  adroitly  they  maneuvered  in  trying  to  accom- 
plish their  purpose.  They  asked  permission  to 
preach  in  the  Southern  Methodist  Church,  and 
thereby  got  possession,  and  they  manipulated  in 
every  way  to  hold  it.  We  give  below  a  full  state- 
ment of  the  facts,  furnished  by  a  very  reliable  per- 
son. The  reader  will  no  doubt  peruse  the  narra- 
tive with  deep  interest. 

In  1838  two  lots  in  the  town  of  La  Grange,  Lewis  County,  Mo., 
were  deeded  to  B.  W.  Stith,  C.  S.  Skinner,  John  Lafon,  Middle- 
ton  Smoot,  and  others,  trustees,  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  as  then  constituted.  In  the  follow- 
ing year  a  small  brick  house  was  erected  on  the  lots,  and  used 
by  the  Church  in  an  unfinished  condition  until  1844.  It  was 
then  finished,  and  upon  the  division  of  the  Church  passed  into 
the  hands  and  ownership  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  The 
membership  of  1845  voted  to  adhere  South,  with  only  three  or 
four  dissenting  voices,  and  they  acquiesced  in  the  will  of  the 
majority  and  remained  in  the  Southern  Church  until  after  the 


158  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

repudiation  of  the  Plan  of  Separation  by  the  General  Conference 
of  1848.  Up  to  that  time  the  Northern  Church  attempted  no 
organization  in  La  Grange ;  but  soon  after  that  event  the  Church 
(North)  sent  a  Rev.  Mr.  Chivington  (the  same  who  made  himself 
notorious  a  few  years  ago  in  the  indiscriminate  massacre  of  In- 
dians near  Fort  Union)  to  that  place.  He  sought  and  obtained 
permission  to  preach  in  the  church.  After  the  sermon  he  organ- 
ized a  class,  and  publicly  thanked  the  members  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  for  the  use  of  their  house. 

The  members  of  the  Church  (North)  recognized  the  validity 
of  the  decisions  of  the  courts  in  the  Maysville  (Ky.),  and  New 
York  and  Cincinnati  Church  property  cases,  and  set  up  no 
claim  whatever  to  the  property  in  La  Grange,  or  elsewhere  in 
Missouri,  until  after  the  beginning  of  the  war. 

In  1853  the  old  church  was  displaced  by  a  new  and  more 
commodious  structure,  erected  and  paid  for  by  the  members  and 
friends  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  at  a  cost  of  over  six  thou- 
sand dollars.  In  this  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  took  no  part,  and 
paid  no  money,  and  claimed  no  interest.  In  1863,  ten  years  there- 
after, a  Rev.  Mr.  Stewart  was  sent  to  La  Grange  by  the  M.  E. 
Church  (North).  This  man  professed  great  friendship  for  South- 
ern Methodists,  and  made  himself  free  and  easy  in  their  homes. 
The  church  was  only  occupied  two  Sabbaths  in  the  month,  and 
Mr.  Stewart  applied  for  the  use  of  it  when  it  was  unoccupied. 
To  this  the  owners  objected  at  first.  Mr.  Stewart  was  offered 
the  use  of  the  German  Methodist  Church,  but  it  did  not  suit  his 
purpose,  and  he  urged  his  application  for  the  Southern  Method- 
ist Church.  It  was  objected  to  by  a  large  number  of  the  mem- 
bers, on  the  ground  that  other  churches  in  the  State  had  been 
seized  and  possessed  by  them — some  in  one  way,  and  some  in 
another — and  they  feared  that  this  might  be  a  ruse  de  guerre. 

Mr.  Stewart  finally  pledged  his  honor  as  a  Christian  gentle- 
man and  minister  to  return  the  key  every  week  to  the  trustees. 
This  he  did  regularly  until  January,  1865,  when  his  quarterly 
meeting  was  held  in  the  church,  and  the  Quarterly  Conference 
appointed  a  Board  of  Trustees,  and  authorized  them  to  hold  pos- 
session of  the  property.  Upon  this  action  Rev.  Mr.  Stewart 
went  out  in  town,  purchased  a  lock,  employed  a  carpenter,  and 
had  it  put  on  in  the  place  of  the  old  one.  He  could  then  return 
both  lock  and  key  with  impunity. 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  159 

The  trustees  thus  raised  and  authorized  to  act  for  the  M.  E. 
Church  (North)  served  the  following  notice  on  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South : 

"LA  GRANGE,  LEWIS  COUNTY,  Mo.,  Feb.  13,  1865. 

"To  John  Munn,  J.  C.  Goodrich,  and  Others,  Trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 

South. 

"  Gentlemen:  Having  a  just  and  legal  claim  to  the  property  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  La  Grange,  as  trustees  of 
said  Church,  we  hereby  notify  j'ou  that  we  intend  to  hold  said 
property  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  ministers  and  members 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  of 
America,  according  to  the  Discipline  and  rules  of  said  Church 
and  the  provisions  of  deed  recorded  in  Book  C,  page  431,  Lewis 
County  records.  We  have  accordingly  taken  possession  of  the 
herein  mentioned  property. 

"  Done  by  order  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  La  Grange  M.  E. 
Church. 

"  W.  M.  REDDING,  President  Board  of  Trustees; 

"  W.  C.  STEWART,  Secretary  pro  tern,  and  Preacher  in  Charge" 

They  had  either  been  waiting  a  suitable  opportunity  or  a 
new  light  had  suddenly  dawned  upon  them  from  some  episco- 
pal, military,  or  other  throne  of  light  and  power,  that  thev  had 
been  using,  by  gracious  privilege  and  courtesy,  property  to 
which  they  had  "a  just(?)  and  legal  claim,"  and  they  acted  ac- 
cordingly. 

Possession  is  said  to  be  nine  points  in  the  law,  and  if  the 
adage  is  true  the  manner  of  gaining  possession  will  not  neces- 
sarily raise  any  curious  questions  of  casuistry.  The  how  will 
not  vitiate  the  nine  points  when  a  new  lock  and  key  with  an 
extra  share  of  loyalty  can  make  up  and  meet  every  other  point 
in  the  legal  decalogue.  It  only  remained  for  them  to  serve  the 
usual  notification  to  save  the  form  of  the  thing,  and  appoint 
Col.  W.  M.  Redding,  President  of  the  Board  and  colonel  of  a 
regiment  of  Lewis  County  militia — not  a  member  of  any 
Church — to  hold  the  property  in  peaceable  possession.  This 
duty  he  performed  faithfully,  for  which  service  he  received,  in 
the  Central  Advocate  (North)  of  December  20,  1865,  the  title  of 
"the  faithful  guardian  of  the  interests  of  the  M.  E.  Church  in 
La  Grange,  Mo." 

A  member  of  the  La  Grange  Quarterly  Conference,  M.  E. 


160  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864  Y,S. 

Church,  South,  from  whom  much  of  the  above  information  was 
obtained,  writes  as  follows: 

"To  keep  step  after  taking  possession  and  serving  notice 
was  the  exhibition  of  Christian  charity  (?)  to  us  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  by  a  polite  offer  to  loan  us  the  use  of  their  (  '•: } 
house  for  our  religious  worship.  But  we  '  had  not  so  learned 
Christ.'  How  could  we  be  partakers  with  thieves  and  robt. 
'My  house  shall  be  called  the  house  of  prayer,  but  ye  have 
made  it  a  den  of  thieves.' 

"  Our  house  has  been  solemnly  dedicated  to  the  worship  of 
Almighty  God  by  Bishop  Marvin  when  there  was  no  name  or 
membership  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  in  the  place;  we  say 
let  the  consecration  abide  and  let  God  defend  the  right.  We 
can  worship  there  no  more  until  the  law  with  the  whip  of  jus- 
tice shall  drive  those  who  trouble  us  to  their  own  place." 

A  letter  in  the  Central  Christian  Advocate  of  December  20, 
1865,  from  Rev.  W.  C.  Stewart  contains  the  following  para- 
graph : 

"When  I  was  in  La  Grange  I  had  the  honor  to  organize  a 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  and  by  their  authority 
to  take  possession  of  the  valuable  house  of  worship  there,  pre- 
viously in  the  hands  of  the  Church,  South.  In  this  movement 
Col.  W.  M.  Redding  took  a  prominent  and  most  efficient  part. 
He  is  still  the  faithful  guardian  of  our  Church  property  in  La 
Grange." 

This  Col.  Redding  was  once  a  member  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  but  withdrew  some  time  before  this  transaction,  declar- 
ing when  he  did  so  that  the  time  would  come  when  a  Southern 
Methodist  could  not  live  in  that  county.  He  was  a  prepared 
instrument  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North),  and  well  fitted  for 
their  special  work,  as  he  had  once  been  a  negro  trader  to  the 
South  and  had  the  price  of  that  human  chattel  in  his  pocket.  A 
little  power  makes  good  radical  leaders  and  instruments  of  such 
men. 

Mr.  Stewart  exults  in  "  the  honor  of  organizing  a  Board  of 
Trustees,  and  by  their  authority  taking  possession  of  the  valu- 
able house  of  worship  formerly  in  the  hands  of  the  Church, 
South."  The  said  "honor"  is  now  made  permanent  and  trans- 
mitted to  posterity.  This  same  Stewart  k-fi  the  M.  E.  Church 
(North),  and  went  over  to  the  Congregationalisms. 


1864-65-  Missouri  Conference.  161 

The  trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  brought  suit  for 
possession  in  a  civil  magistrate's  court.  It  was  appealed  to  the 
Circuit  Court  for  Lewis  County  by  defendants,  and  then  by  the 
same  party,  upon  a  change  of  venue,  taken  to  Shelby  County. 
When  called  in  the  Circuit  Court  in  Shelbyville  they  were  not 
ready  for  trial.  Before  the  session  of  the  court  in  November, 
1866,  they  asked  the  Church,  South,  to  compromise  by  referring 
the  whole  case  to  three  men  for  arbitration.  When  this  was 
agreed  to  both  parties  gave  bond  in  the  sum  of  $500  to  abide 
the  decision.  February  i,  1867,  was  set  for  hearing  by  the 
arbitrators.  When  case  was  stated  by  the  Church,  South,  the 
other  party  asked  leave  to  withdraw  the  bond.  To  this  objec- 
tions were  made,  and  they  wrangled  over  it  till  4  o'clock  P.M. 
The  Church,  North,  asked  a  continuance  till  9  o'clock  next 
morning.  This  was  granted,  and  at  the  appointed  time  they  ap- 
peared and  revoked  their  bond,  saying  that  they  preferred  to 
have  the  case  tried  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States, 
nnd  would  make  it  a  precedent  for  Missouri.  Whether  this 
course  was  intended  only  for  delay  their  subsequent  declara- 
tion that  they  did  not  expect  to  be  ready  for  trial  for  ten  years 
is  the  best  interpretation. 

Woaricd  out  of  all  patience  with  such  miserable  tergiversa- 
tion, the  trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  headed  by  their 
pastor,  Rev.  T.  J.  Starr,  prepared  to  bring  suit  again,  believing 
that  their  only  hope  was  in  the  civil  courts.  As  soon  as  Col. 
Redding  and  those  who  acted  with  him  found  that  they  would 
have  to  meet  the  case  in  the  civil  courts  they  proposed  a  com- 
promise, which,  during  the  absence  of  their  preacher  in  charge, 
was  accepted.  This  compromise  gave  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
n  quitclaim  deed  to  less  than  half  the  two  lots  with  the  new 
church,  and  the  M.  E.  Chairch  (North)  a  similar  deed  to  the  old 
church  with  the  rest  of  the- two  lots.* 

This  shows  what  pertinacity  can  do.  The  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  made  them  a  present  of  the  old 
church  and  the  ground  on  which  it  stood  just  to 
get  rid  of  them.  They  knew  very  well  from  what 
the  civil  courts  had  done  in  other  cases  that  they 

*  Dr.  LefLwiclx's  book. 
11 


162  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

could  recover  all  their  property,  but  they  were  worn 
out  and  tired  of  litigation,  and  hence  accepted  a 
compromise.  This  may  be  regarded  as  a  repre- 
sentative case,  and  will  give  the  reader  a  very  cor- 
rect idea  of  their  course  of  procedure  in  the  seiz- 
ure of  other  churches.  Knowing  that  in  law,  in 
justice,  and  equity  they  had  no  claim  whatever  to 
the  property,  they  were  under  the  necessity  of  re- 
sorting to  subtle  chicanery  to  gain  their  point. 

REV.  J.  H.  PRITCHETT  AND  His  WORK. 
We  take  great  pleasure  in  calling  the  attention 
of  the  reader  to  the  following  interesting  sketch, 
given  by  Rev.  J.  H.  Pritchett,  of  his  ministerial 
life  and  work  from  the  time  he  entered  the  itin- 
erant ministry  to  A.D.  1867.  The  ministry  and 
the  Church  are  inseparable.  Indeed,  the  ministry 
constitute  an  important  part  of  the  Church,  and  in 
giving  an  account  of  their  work  they  necessarily 
furnish  the  annals  and  materials  for  the  history  of 
the  Church.  This  fact  the  reader  will  readily  see 
in  this  narrative. 

I  was  admitted  on  trial  in  the  Missouri  Annual  Conference 
during  its  session  at  Richmond  in  September,  1855,  Bishop  Early 
presiding.  I  was  transferred  at  once  to  the  Kansas  Mission 
Conference,  and  was  appointed  junior  preacher  at  Tecumseh 
Circuit,  Lecompton  District,  L.  B.  Stateler  preacher  in  charge, 
and  W.  Bradford  presiding  elder. 

The  session  of  the  Kansas  Mission  Conference  for  1856  was 
held  at  Kickapoo,  Kan.,  Bishop  Pierce  presiding.  I  was  ap- 
pointed in  charge  of  Council  Grove  Circuit. 

In  1857  our  Conference  met  in  Leavenworth  City.  No 
bishop.  I  was  returned  to  Council  Grove  Circuit.  Met  Bish- 
op Andrew  at  Glasgow,  Mo.,  and  was  ordained  deacon. 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  163 

In  1858  Shawneetown  was  the  seat  of  our  Conference. 
Bishop  Early  presided.  He  sent  me  to  Leavenworth  City,  with 
Thomas  Wallace  as  my  presiding  elder. 

Bishop  Paine  presided  at  our  Conference  at  Tecumseh,  in 
1859,  and  I  was  ordained  elder  and  returned  to  Leavenworth 
City,  but  spent  the  last  half  of  the  year  on  the  Council  Grove 
District,  Brother  Bradford,  presiding  elder,  having  been  sent  to 
Denver,  Colo.,  to  look  after  our  interests  there. 

Bishop  Kavanaugh  held  our  Conference  for  1860  at  Wyan- 
dotte,  and  I  was  transferred  to  the  Missouri  Conference,  and 
appointed  to  the  Sturgeon  Circuit,  Fayette  District,  with  Edwin 
Robinson  as  my  presiding  elder. 

I  began  work  as  soon  as  I  could  move  and  settle  mv  family. 
There  being  no  parsonage  upon  the  charge,  I  took  my  family  to 
my  father's  old  farm  in  Warren  County,  where  they  remained 
through  all  the  radical  changes  that  followed  until  1868.  As 
then  constituted,  the  Sturgeon  Circuit  embraced  Sturgeon,  Cen- 
tralia,  Mount  Zion,  Mount  Moriah,  Hallsville,  and  Union,  to- 
gether with  Cook's,  Bishop's,  Green's,  and  one  other  school- 
house.  I  found  the  people  in  the  midst  of  a  political  campaign 
of  a  most  heated  and  uncompromising  character.  Everybodv 
was  interested  and  everybody  took  part.  This  only  passed 
away  to  be  followed  by  the  breaking  up  of  the  foundations  of 
society  and  the  long  and  bloody  Civil  War. 

To  one  who  had  been  through  five  years  of  Kansas  troubles 
these  things  were  neither  strange  nor  unexpected;  but  they  were 
none  the  less  real  and  terrible.  I 'preached  this  year  to  large 
and  eager  congregations  all  around  the  circuit;  but  such  was  the 
political  followed  by  the  military  excitement  that  religion 
seemed  put  away  for  the  time.  We  had  some  good  meetings, 
however — notably  at  Mount  Zion,  Mount  Moriah,  and  at  one 
or  two  school-houses.  Some  revival  and  increase  among  those 
to  whom  I  preached,  and  who  labored  with  me  in  the  Lord  that 
year.  A  few  still  remain  in  my  knowledge.  John  P.  Horner,  of 
Columbia,  was  then  a  merchant  at  Sturgeon.  His  house  was 
my  home,  and  he  and  his  now  sainted  wife  went  a  great  way  to 
constitute  the  Church  at  that  place:  Maj.  Rucker,  now  of  Stur- 
geon, was  then  a  young  man  just  from  Virginia,  and  was  clerk- 
ing for  Brother  Horner.  Jonn  Reed  still  lives  on  his  farm  near 
Mount  Zion  Church.  He  must  have  been  sixty  years  old  when 


164  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

I  first  met  him  in  the  old  church  in  the  fall  of  1860.  He  was 
then  and  is  now  the  patriarch  of  the  congregation.  His  history 
in  the  Church  there,  personal  and  official,  has  been  a  remark- 
able one. 

The  old  church  which  was  built  in  1848  was  burned  in  De- 
cember, 1861,  by  the  Federal  troops,  after  a  hard-fought  battle 
in  and  around  it,  with  two  or  three  companies  of  recruits  on 
their  way  to  join  Gen.  Price  in  South-west  Missouri.  A  much 
better  house,  built  since  the  war,  now  marks  the  old  site. 

The  financial  receipts  of  this  year  barely  paid  my  traveling 
expenses. 

The  Missouri  Conference  for  1861  was  held  at  Glasgow.  Xo 
bishop  was  present.  Owing  to  the  general  and  intense  excite- 
ment many  of  the  preachers  were  absent,  myself  among  the 
number.  Our  circumstances  and  wishes  being  unknown  to  the 
brethren,  we  were  as  a  rule  put  down  as  supernumeraries  on 
those  charges  where  our  families  were  known  or  supposed  to 
reside.  My  name  thus  appeared  in  connection  with  the  Flint 
Hill  Circuit,  in  the  St.  Charles  District,  B.  H.  Spencer  being 
presiding  elder,  and  Charles  Babcock  preacher  in  charge.  The 
circuit  consisted  of  Flint  Hill,  Mount  Zion,  Paulsingyille,  and 
Pleasant  Hill,  churches,  and  Salem,  Rockingham,  and  Young's, 
school-houses.  My  father's  old  farm,  a  part  of  which  I  had 
purchased,  was  within  the  bounds  of  the  charge,  and  I  was  at 
home  so  far  as  residence  was  concerned.  The  Board  of  Stew- 
ards insisted  that  I  should  do  full  work,  and  I  being  perfectly 
able  and  willing,  arrangements  were  made  to  support  as  well  as 
possible  two  preachers'  families.  No  Conference  being  held  in 
1862,  the  same  arrangement  was  continued.  Considering  all  the 
circumstances,  it  is  wonderful  how  regularly  our  appointments 
were  filled,  how  well  the  Church  was  kept  together,  and  how 
many  were  persuaded  to  be  religious. 

Besides  the  general  excitement  created  by  the  war,  the  pres- 
ence and  constant  terrorizing  of  the  "  Dutch  Home  Guards" 
made  life  an  uncertainty  and  a  burden  to  all  the  better  class  of 
citizens  in  that  region.  During  this  time,  while  I  alternated 
with  my  colleague  in  filling  the  regular  appointments  of  the 
circuit,  and  bore  my  part  in  all  special  meetings,  the  greater 
part  of  our  material  support  came  from  tilling  my  land  and 
teaching  school  in  my  own  house,  the  brethren  often  helping 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  165 

to  take  care  of  my  crop  and  stock  while  I  carried  on  or  helped 
at  meetings  at  a  distance. 

In  1863  Conference  \vas  held  at  Fulton.  Comparatively  few 
of  the  members  were  present,  and  no  bishop.  I  was  appointed 
in  charge  of  Flint  Hill  Circuit,  so  that  I  really  traveled  that 
charge  three  years  in  succession.  It  was  at  that  time  a  strong 
circuit.  Mount  Zion  especially,  as  I  remember  it,  had  a  remark- 
able congregation.  In  my  thirty-five  years'  ministry,  I  do  not  rec- 
ollect that  I  ever  served  its  equal.  The  Campbells,  the  Pittman's, 
the  Dorsevs,  the  Ferrils,  the  Ilealds,  the  Keithleys,  and  their 
large  family  connections  made  an  assemblage  to  be  marked 
anywhere  for  intelligence,  piety,  sterling  integrity,  and  worth. 
They  had  all  been  for  a  score  of  years  the  companions  and  co-la- 
borers of  my  then  sainted  father.  I  felt  toward  them  as  I  never 
felt  toward  any  other  body  of  men.  What  an  inspiration  it 
was  to  preach  to  those  grand  old  pioneers  of  Methodism  in  that 
part  of  the  State,  knowing  as  I  did  that  I  had  their  sympathies, 
their  prayers,  and  their  hearty  co-operation!  Only  a  small 
remnant  of  the  noble  old  guards  of  that  troublous  time  is  left, 
and  I  feel  like  taking  off  my  hat  and  bowing  my  head  when- 
ever I  meet  Father  D.  K.  Pittman,  whose  presence  and  counsel 
still  linger  with  us. 

During  1863  Brother  Tyson  Dines,  who  was  stationed  at  St. 
Charles,  was  arrested,  taken  to  St.  Louis,  put  under  bond,  and 
was  compelled  to  remain  under  military  surveillance  there. 
Our  presiding  elder,  Brother  B.  H.  Spencer,  was  also  arrested 
and  banished  from  the  State.  Brother  Horace  Brown  was  sent 
to  the  district  and  Brother  Dines's  charge  was  added  to  mine, 
and  Brother  II.  B.  Watson  was  sent  to  assist  me  on  the  work. 
These  were  times  that  tried  men's  souls,  especially  the  souls 
of  those  who  presumed  to  preach  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South.  The  lay  brethren,  how- 
ever, were  eminently  loyal  to  the  Church,  and  not  only  stood 
by  the  men  who  preached  for  them,  but  out  of  their  increasing 
poverty  did  what  they  could  to  feed  and  clothe  the  family  of 
their  banished  presiding  elder.  The  year,  I  trust,  was  not  alto- 
gether a  fruitless  one. 

In  September  of  1864  quite  a  number  of  the  members  of  the 
Conference  met  in  Mexico,  and  after  a  great  deal  of  trouble 
with  the  military  popinjay  who  had  been  dignified  with  the 


166  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

title  of  provost-marshal,  by  a  special  order  from  St.  Louis  \ve 
were  allowed  to  proceed  with  our  business.  There  was  no 
bishop  present,  and  Father  Monroe  was  elected  President.  The 
doings  of  the  Conference  are  of  record.  I  left,  by  the  advice  of 
older  brethren,  early  in  the  session.  Not  having  taken  the  oath 
prescribed  for  preachers,  I  was  not  only  excluded  from  mv 
place  in  the  Conference,  but  also  threatened  with  military  ar- 
rest. 

I  was  appointed  to  St.  Charles  Station,  and  went  to  mv  work 
at  once.  Considering  every  thing,  the  Church  was  in  a  hopeful 
state,  the  congregation  large,  and  but  for  the  constantly  recur- 
ring waves  of  military  and  political  excitement  which  harassed, 
alarmed,  and  unsettled  the  minds  of  our  people  the  results 
would  have  been  vastly  different.  The  Church,  however,  was 
considerably  strengthened  both  in  numbers  and  influence  by 
parties  who  sought  refuge  in  St.  Charles  from  worse  evils  else- 
where. 

Early  in  November  our  house  of  worship  was  badly  wrecked 
by  a  storm,  and  for  some  time  the  propriety  of  repairing  was  a 
question  of  serious  debate.  Our  congregation  in  the  meantime 
occupied  the  Episcopal  church,  which  was  generously  tendered 
us,  that  congregation  being  for  the  time  without  a  pastor. 
Manv  of  our  people  despaired  at  that  time  of  the  future  of  our 
Church,  and  felt  little  disposed  to  build  or  repair  property  for 
the  use  and  benefit  of  those  who  were  known  to  be  waiting 
only  for  the  consent  of  civil  power  to  enter  in  and  possess  our 
all.  The  indications,  too,  were  ominous  that  "  Herod  would  not 
fail  his  Herodias,"  nor  Ahab  his  Jezebel,  when  the  proper  time 
for  the  murder  and  transfer  should  arrive. 

Besides,  about  this  time  quite  a  number  of  the  best  citizens  of 
St.  Charles  and  vicinity  organized  an  association  for  the  pur- 
pose of  settling  a  colony  in  Brazil,  and  Judge  E.  A.  Lewis  went 
to  Washington  City  to  confer  with  the  representatives  of  that 
government  in  regard  to  a  location.  The  report  made  by  the 
judge  on  his  return  divided  the  association,  however,  and  the 
project  was  abandoned.  Our  people  now  saw  nothing  better  for 
them  than  to  repair  their  church,  and  with  the  hearty  co-oper- 
ation of  a  few  such  men  as  the  three  Overalls,  McDowell,  and 
Evans,  together  with  a  half-dozen  irrepressible  women,  such  as 
Sisters  Dr.  Overall  and  Rogers,  the  house  was  soon  as  good, 


1864-65-  Missouri  Conference.  167 

if  not  better,  than  it  had  ever  been ;  and  we  were  again  worship- 
ing in  it  with  full  congregations. 

The  energy  of  those  brethren  in  their  discouragement  was 
only  equal  to  their  liberality  in  their  poverty.  Nor  was  the 
Lord  of  the  vineyard  unmindful  of  their  sacrifices,  for  his 
presence  and  blessing  were  clearly  manifested  in  all  their  serv- 
ices in  the  newly  repaired  house.  The  Sunday-school,  the 
prayer-meeting,  the  public  service — all  showed  that  the  Lord 
was  in  his  house.  So  passed  the  winter  of  1864,  and  so  came 
on  the  spring  of  1865. 

Having  made  all  my  arrangements,  even  to  the  purchase  of 
gold,  to  go  as  avant-courcur  of  the  colony  to  Brazil,  and  being 
disappointed  by  the  failure  of  that  enterprise,  I  determined 
early  in  the  spring  to  go  West  and  seek  a  new  home  for  my 
family. 

I  surrendered  my  charge  to  Bishop  Kavanaugh,  and  asked 
for  a  work  in  Montana.  He  supplied  my  place,  but  gave  me 
no  work.  From  April,  1865,  to  June,  1866,  I  was  a  wanderer, 
traveling  by  almost  every  conceivable  means  of  locomotion, 
working  at  almost  every  available  occupation,  dealing  with  al- 
most every  known  kind  of  people.  I  was  able,  by  the  help  of 
God,  to  make  a  living,  maintain  my  Christian  integrity,  do 
some  good,  I  trust,  and  get  back  to  my  family.  I  found  no 
place  to  which  I  felt  disposed  to  transfer  my  family,  though  if 
I  /tad  no  family  I  should  certainly  have  remained  in  Montana. 
I  think  some  of  my  best  ministerial  work  was  done  in  Helena, 
in  that  Territory. 

When  I  arrived  at  home  in  June,  1866,  I  found  Church  af- 
fairs still  much  disordered.  I  applied  to  Brother  B.  II.  Spen- 
cer, who  was  again  presiding  elder  of  St.  Charles  District,  for 
work,  and  he  gave  me  what  had  once  been  Warrenton  Circuit. 
It  had  formerly  embraced  Warrenton,  Troy,  Marthasville, 
Ebenezer,  and  six  or  eight  school-houses.  The  house  at  War- 
renton, having  been  turned  into  a  military  stable  during  the  war, 
was  now  unfit  even  to  shelter  horses.  The  church  was  disor- 
ganized and  scattered.  At  Troy  the  house  was  out  of  repair 
and  hopelessly  in  debt,  the  few  members  dispirited  and  divided. 
At  Marthasville  what  had  been  a  strong  Church  was  now  re- 
duced to  almost  nothing.  I  went  around  the  circuit  twice,  and 
learned  at  least  what  I  have  stated. 


1 68  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

The  presiding  elder  came  round,  and  we  held  the  fourth 
quarterly  meeting  in  a  hay  barn  at  Wright  City.  We  had  a 
large  attendance,  a  good  meeting,  and  hopes  were  kindled  that 
something  might  yet  be  done  in  the  old  home  of  E.  M.  Marvin. 

Conference  was  held  this  year  at  Richmond,  where  eleven 
years  before  I  had  been  received  on  trial.  In  one  sense  it 
seemed  an  age;  in  another,  but  a  few  days.  Bishop  Doggett 
presided.  I  was  returned  to  Warrenton  Circuit,  with  Horace 
Brown  as  my  presiding  elder.  I  had  known  him  when  a  boy 
as  the  pastor  of  my  father  and  mother,  only  to  dread  his  long 
sermons,  which  I  did  not  understand,  and  avoid  his  personal 
interviews,  which  I  did  not  appreciate.  I  had  known  him  a 
short  time  as  my  presiding  elder  during  the  war,  but  under  cir- 
cumstances which  failed  to  bring  out  any  thing  for  me,  except 
the  preaching  power  that  was  so  hugely  in  him.  In  this  new 
relationship  I  became  strongly  attached  to  him,  finding  in  him 
not  only  one  of  the  most  powerful  preachers  that  Missouri 
Methodism  ever  had,  but  one  of  the  truest  and  warmest  hearts 
that  ever  beat  in  any  man. 

This  was  a  year  of  remarkable  development  on  Warrenton 
Circuit  along  every  line.  The  house  at  Warrenton  was  re- 
paired at  once,  and  a  revival  soon  put  us  in  possession  of  more 
than  all  we  had  lost.  At  Marthasville  we  soon  repaired,  paid 
the  debt,  and  had  a  good  congregation.  At  Troy  the  debt  of 
fifteen  hundred  dollars  troubled  us  for  several  months,  but 
Bishop  Marvin  came  to  our  help.  We  paid  the  debt,  and  have 
been  moving  a  little  ever  since.  Then  lastly,  at  Wright  Citv, 
the  old  home  of  Marvin,  where  we  have  never  had  any  thing 
except  a  few  scattered  members,  worshiping  sometimes  in  a 
school-house  and  sometimes  in  a  private  house,  we  had  a  re- 
vival that  took  in  almost  every  prominent  family  in  the  com- 
munity, and  ended  in  the  erection  of  a  beautiful  and  commo- 
dious house  of  worship  which  the  bishop  dedicated  at  the 
beginning  of  the  next  year.  The  presiding  elder  stated  in  the 
District  Conference,  which  Bishop  Marvin  held  for  us  that  year 
at  High  Hill,  that  in  his  long  and  varied  ministry  he  had  never 
seen  such  a  "resurrection  of  spiritual  power"  as  was  witnessed 
during  this  year,  particularly  on  Warrenton  and  Williamsburg 
Circuits.  Brother  G.  W.  Penn  was  in  charge  of  the  latter  cir- 
cuit. 


1864-65.  Missotiri  Conference.  169 

THE  PALMYRA  MEETING. 

The  most  noticeable  event  in  the  history  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South,  during  the  war  was  the  Pal- 
myra meeting.  Its  importance  cannot  be  adequate- 
ly estimated.  Did  it  not  involve  the  destiny  of  the 
Church,  which  was  at  that  time  vibrating  between 
life  and  death?  It  was  indeed  a  fearful  crisis  in 
the  history  of  Southern  Methodism.  The  Church 
was  wrapped  in  the  most  anxious  solicitude,  real- 
izing that  something  must  be  done.  For  three 
long  years  she  had  suffered  one  of  the  most  violent 
and  destructive  persecutions  that  ever  visited  the 
people  of  God.  Some  of  her  most  intelligent 
friends  entertained  fearful  apprehensions  that  she 
could  not  live  through  the  ravages  of  the  war.  By 
the  M.  E.  Church  she  was  pronounced  dead,  hope- 
lessly dead,  beyond  recovery.  They  spread  the 
news  all  over  the  country,  and  gave  it  extensive 
publicity  through  their  press  and  pulpits. 

They  may  have  thought  she  was  dead,  as  she 
had  suffered  enough  to  cause  death.  Her  homes 
had  been  desolated,  her  houses  burned,  her  furni- 
ture, carpets,  beds,  bedding,  silver  plate,  clothing 
of  all  kinds,  had  been  captured;  her  farms  laid 
waste ;  her  wagons,  loaded  with  her  own  goods, 
and  drawn  by  her  own  horses  and  mules,  driven 
away;  her  barns  emptied  of  corn  and  wheat  and 
oats  and  hay,  and  her  stock  of  all  kinds  carried 
off;  her  ministers  proscribed,  banished,  impris- 
oned, and  put  to  death;  her  houses  of  worship, 
parsonages,  seminaries,  and  colleges  seized  and 


170  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

taken  possession  of;  her  congregations  disorgan- 
ized and  forbidden  to  assemble ;  her  newspapers 
suppressed,  and  all  means  of  intercommunication 
cut  off. 

In  view  of  the  foregoing  facts,  they  might  very 
naturally  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  she  was 
dead.  They  must  have  believed  it,  for  they  pro- 
ceeded to  administer  on  her  estate.  The  settle- 
ment of  so  large  an  estate  was  a  matter  of  no  little 
importance,  for  their  idea  was  to  embrace  the  en- 
tire M.  E.  Church,  South.  To  manipulate  the 
business  successfully,  and  to  reach  the  desired  re- 
sults, required  their  best  talents  and  ablest  men.  It 
is  not  at  all  surprising  that  some  of  their  prominent 
bishops  took  the  lead  in  an  enterprise  of  such  vast 
magnitude.  It  was  a  big  thing.  The  prospect 
opened  before  them  grandly.  Then  there  would 
be  but  one  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the 
United  States,  whose  jurisdiction  would  extend  to 
the  utmost  boundary  of  our  country.  What  a 
grand  and  magnificent  Church  they  would  have ! 
So  Bishop  Ames  thought.  Invested  with  the  high- 
est ecclesiastical  and  military  authority  and  under 
the  commission  of  Stanton-Ames  order,  he  went 
South  as  minister  plenipotentiary  and  administrator 
of  the  estate  of  a  dead  Church,  with  full  authority 
to  take  possession  of  her  property,  vi  et  armis. 
Well  might  justice  hide  her  blushing  face,  and  eq- 
uity retire  from  the  scene  of  usurpation  and  op- 
pression ! 

As  has  been  already  intimated,  theM.  E,  Church, 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  171 

South,  scarcely  knew, under  existing  circumstances, 
whether  she,  as  an  ecclesiastical  organization,  was 
alive  or  dead.  Yet  she  was  silently  trusting  in  God, 
and  earnestly  praying  for  deliverance,  that  God 
would  be  merciful  and  come  to  the  rescue  of  his 
distressed  and  persecuted  people.  Nor  did  she 
pray  in  vain.  The  God  of  infinite  benevolence  and 
boundless  mercy  answered  her  prayer  in  his  own 
way.  As  he  chose  Moses  to  deliver  the  children 
of  Israel  out  of  the  cruel  bondage  and  servitude  of 
Egypt;  as  he  chose  Martin  Luther  to  break  the 
power  of  the  papal  hierarchy,  and  expose  the 
abominable  superstitions  of  Romanism ;  as  he  chose 
John  Wesley  to  save  true,  spiritual,  experimental 
Christianity  from  the  ritualism  of  mere  formal  wor- 
ship, so  he  chose  his  aged  servant,  "the  pioneer 
and  patriarch  of  Missouri  Methodism,"  Rev.  An- 
drew Monroe,  to  lead  in  a  movement fer  the  deliv- 
erance of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  from  the  per- 
secution, oppression,  and  usurpation  of  those  in 
power.  He  called  a  meeting  of  the  preachers  and 
official  members  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  with- 
in the  bounds  of  the  Missouri  Conference,  to  be 
held  at  Palmyra  June  22,  1865,  for  the  purpose  of 
ascertaining  the  real  condition  of  the  Church,  and 
to  take  under  consideration  important  questions 
appertaining  to  the  vital  interests  of  the  Church, 
and  the  best  measures  for  advancing  her  highest 
welfare. 

The  call  was  made  as  general  as  practicable, 
chiefly  through  private  correspondence.     This  was 


172  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

attended  with  no  little  difficulty,  as  the  mails  were 
irregular  and  uncertain.  Many  and  serious  diffi- 
culties were  in  the  way  of  responding  to  the  call. 
There  was  great  peril  in  traveling  through  the  coun- 
try. Some  felt  that  if  they  should  start  they  would 
not  reach  Palmyra.  Others  were  so  impoverished 
by  the  war  that  they  did  not  have  the  means  to  de- 
fray their  traveling  expenses.  Others,  again,  were 
too  timid  to  face  the  music. 

Twenty-four  preachers,  two  of  whom  were  local, 
and  about  half  as  many  laymen,  presented  them- 
selves at  the  time  and  place — a  noble  quorum  of 
first-class  business  men  of  grit  and  pluck,  and  not 
afraid  to  follow  their  convictions.  Rev.  Andrew 
Monroe  was  elected  President,  and  Rev.  John  D. 
Vincil  Secretary.  The  following  preachers  en- 
rolled their  names:  Revs.  A.  Monroe,  C.  I.  Van 
Deventer,  F.  A.  Savage,  B.  H.  Spencer,  W.  M. 
Rush,  R.  G.  Loving,  James  Penn,  H.  H.  Hedge- 
peth,  W.  M.  Newland,  W.  W.  McMurry,  John  D. 
Vincil,  R.  P.  Holt,  A.  P.  Linn,  Louis  Downing,  H. 
A.  Bourland,  E.  A.  Hudson,  Jacob  McEwin,  L. 
Rush,  W.  Warren,  P.  M.  Pinckard,  S.  H.  Huffa- 
ker,  and  W.  M.  Leftwich;  also  Revs.  W.  D.  Cox 
and  W.  O.  Cross,  local  preachers,  and  a  number 
of  laymen  were  present. 

This  writer  would  rather  have  his  name  on  the 
above  roll  than  to  have  been  one  of  the  signers  of 
the  Declaration  of  Independence ;  for  while  he 
loves  his  country  much,  he  loves  his  Church  more. 
Did  those  patriots  immortalize  themselves  by  sign- 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  173 

ing  the  Declaration  of  Independence?  So  did 
those  ministers  immortalize  their  names  by  adopt- 
ing an  important  paper  for  the  liberation  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  from  the  tyranny  of  ecclesiastic- 
al oppression  more  galling  than  the  yoke  of  Great 
Britain.  Will  the  names  of  those  patriots  live  in 
the  history  of  their  country  forever?  So  will  the 
names  of  those  ministers  live  in  the  history  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South,  as  long  as  she  has  a  history, 
and  then  will  live  on  in  heaven  through  the  per- 
petual cycles  of  an  unending  duration.  The 
Church  now  pays  a  grateful  tribute  to  their  mem- 
ory. 

The  meeting  was  unique,  sui  generis,  unprece- 
dented— nothing  like  it  had  gone  before.  Hence 
it  was  characterized  by  originality.  They  had  no 
previously  established  forms  and  usages  to  guide 
them.  It  was  a  new  kind  of  meeting — new  ques- 
tions to  be  considered,  new  measures  to  be 
adopted,  new  life  to  be  infused  into  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  Church  in  all  her  departments. 

The  circumstances  of  the  meeting  were  pecul- 
iar, delicate,  critical,  perilous.  One  mistake,  one 
wrong  word,  one  improper  act  might  prove  fatal 
to  the  meeting.  Detectives  and  armed  enemies 
were  present,  wide  awake  and  watching  with  all 
diligence  to  get  hold  of  something  by  which  they 
might  justify  themselves  in  breaking  up  the  meet- 
ing. Then,  too,  the  abominable  "test  oath"  of 
the  new  Constitution,  which  was  all  the  talk  at  that 
time,  was  staring  them  in  the  face  with-  its  threats 


174  Methodism  in  Missouri.  \ 864-6 5. 

of  arrest,  proscription,  indictment,  banishment, 
imprisonment,  and  death  to  all  Southern  Method- 
ist preachers  who  would  not  perjure  themselves 
by  violating  their  conscience  and  their  obligations 
to  God.  It  seems  that  the  "  test  oath  "  was  an  in- 
strument of  persecution  fabricated  for  that  very 
purpose. 

Notwithstanding  these  facts,  which  were  calcu- 
lated to  intimidate  them,  they  boldly  proceeded 
with  the  business  of  the  meeting  as  though  there 
was  nothing  unusual.  That  they  might  obtain  the 
necessary  information  from  the  different  parts  of 
the  State,  each  preacher  was  called  on  to  make  a 
report  of  the  state  of  the  Church  in  the  bounds  of 
his  work  and  the  condition  of  things  in  his  section 
of  the  country.  To  hear  them  tell  of  the  trials  and 
troubles,  the  privations  and  sufferings  of  them- 
selves and  of  their  people  moved  the  congregation 
to  tears,  and  was  enough  to  melt  a  heart  of  stone. 

Very  much  to  the  gratification  of  the  preachers, 
"Bishop  Kavanaugh,  of  Kentucky,  arrived  on  the 
second  day  about  12  o'clock  M.  They  felt  the  in- 
spiration of  his  presence  and  that  his  coming  would 
be  a  benediction  to  them;  that  his  judicious  coun- 
sel and  wise  advice  would  be  just  what  they 
needed. 

After  the  preachers  had  made  their  reports  and 
each  one  had  given  an  account  of  the  condition  of 
the  Church  in  his  field  of  labor  the  whole  matter 
was  committed  to  the  "  Committee  on  State  of  the 
Church"  to  take  what  had  been  said  under  con- 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  175 

sideration  and  report  to  the  meeting  the  results  of 
their  deliberations.  Was  there  ever  a  committee 
charged  with  weightier  and  more  important  duties? 
The  earnest  prayers  of  the  Church  ascended  to 
heaven  in  their  behalf  that  God  would  guide  them 
to  right  thoughts,  right  words,  right  actions,  and  to 
right  conclusions.  Let  the  reader  give  attention 
to  the  report  of  the  committee  as  found  below,  and 
he  will  be  satisfied  that  the  prayers  of  the  Church 
were  answered: 

Your  committee,  in  considering  "the  importance  of  main- 
taining our  separate  and  distinct  ecclesiastical  organization," 
beg  leave  to  present  the  following  resolution  and  accompany- 
ing paper: 

Resolved,  That  we  consider  the  maintenance  of  our  sepa- 
rate and  distinct  ecclesiastical  organization  as  of  paramount  im- 
portance and  our  imperative  duty. 

The  reasons  are  manv  and  obvious.  While  we  have  main- 
tained a  separate  and  distinct  ecclesiastical  organization  for 
twenty  years,  yet  we  claim  original  paternity  and  co-existence 
as  a  Methodist  Church  with  the  other  branches  of  the  great 
Methodist  family  in  the  country.  Facts  will  not  permit  us  to 
yield  to  any  other  Church  of  that  name  priority  of  age;  nor  in 
any  other  light  than  as  an  attempt  to  deceive  the  unsuspecting 
among  our  people  can  we  regard  the  specious  claims  urged 
to  the  confidence  and  patronage  of  the  Methodist  public  under 
the  name  of  "  Old  Church." 

In  contravention  to  the  Plan  of  Separation  agreed  upon  by 
the  General  Conference  of  1844 — the  legitimacy  and  binding 
force  of  which  were  recognized  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States — the  Northern  wing  of  the  Church  has  acted  in 
bad  faith  toward  us  in  many  ways. 

And  since  that  Church  was  forced  by  law  to  give  to  our 
Church  her  pro  rata  division  of  property — which  she  was  too 
mercenary  to  do  without  an  appeal  to  the  highest  judiciary  of 
the  country — she  has  persisted  in  an  unprovoked  and  undesired 


• 


176 


Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 


war  upon  us — a  war  which  has  aggravated  the  questions  of  dif- 
ference, widened  the  breach,  and  produced  an  estrangement  of 
feeling  and  a  destruction  of  fellowship  for  which  she  alone  is 
responsible,  and  which  we  cannot  even  seek  to  remedy  without 
compromising  principles  and  yielding  all  self-respect. 

Those  who  publish  to  the  world  that  all  differences  between 
us  are  swept  away  with  the  institution  of  slavery  are  either  ig- 
norant of  the  facts  or  are  trying  to  mislead  the  public.  The 
question  upon  which  the  Church  divided  was  not  whether  the 
institution  of  slavery  was  right  or  wrong,  fcr  «?,  but  whether  it 
was  a  legitimate  subject  for  ecclesiastical  legislation.  The  right 
or  wrong  of  the  institution,  its  existence  or  non-existence,  could 
not  affect  this  vital  question.  It  is  now  abolished  by  Federal 
and  State  legislation,  which  event  we  accept  as  a  political 
measure  with  which  we  have  nothing  to  do  as  a  Church.  And 
it  remains  for  us  to  demonstrate  our  ability  to  exist  without  the 
institution  of  slavery,  as  we  have  existed  with  it,  which  we 
have  already  done  in  California  and  other  places. 

Now,  if  we  go  into  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  we  will 
by  that  act  yield  the  position  we  have  so  often  taken,  admit  the 
charges  we  have  so  often  refuted,  and,  by  accepting  political 
tests  of  Church-fellowship,  stultify  ourselves  and  compromise 
the  essential  principles  of  the  gospel.  If  we  seek  an  alliance 
with  or  permit  our  Church  to  be  swallowed  up  by  any  other  ec- 
clesiastical body  so  as  to  destroy  our  separate  existence  as  a  dis- 
tinct organization,  we  admit  the  charge  that  with  the  institu- 
tion of  slavery  we  stand  or  fall. 

The  subject  of  Church  reconstruction  or  consolidation  has 
been  widely  discussed  by  the  press  and  the  ministry  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  (North),  and  reasons,  both  political 
and  ecclesiastical,  are  urged  with  an  ill-disguised  pertinacity 
why  we  should  consent  to  an  absorption  of  our  entire  ecclesi- 
astical body  by  that  Church. 

It  cannot  be  disguised  that  what  they  failed  to  accomplish 
during  the  war  by  military  order  and  authority  they  now  seek 
to  effect  by  ecclesiastical  strategy  and  diplomacy — that  is,  to  get 
possession  of  our  Church  property,  and  rather  than  recognize 
us  now  as  a  Christian  Church  entitled  to  their  ecclesiastical  fel- 
lowship and  Christian  fraternity  (which  they  by  formal  vote  of 
their  General  Conference  refused  to  do  in  1848)  and  in  that 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  177 

way,  and  with  a  Christian  spirit,  seek  to  offer  negotiations  upon 
the  subject,  they  prefer  to  ignore  our  existence,  or,  which  would 
suit  their  purpose  better,  pronounce  us  disloyal  to  the  govern- 
ment, and  per  consequence  not  entitled  to  an  existence  at  all ;  then 
invade  us  and  by  misrepresentations  seek  to  disaffect  our  peo- 
ple, disintegrate  our  Church,  and  inaugurate  an  ecclesiastical 
strife  that  will  involve  the  third  and  fourth  generations. 

The  only  consolidation  or  reconstruction  they  would  accept 
would  be  that  we  turn  over  to  them  our  Church  property  and 
interests  and  influence;  yield  the  whole  field;  confess  that  we 
have  been  in  the  wrong;  indorse  the  politics  of  their  Church 
as  a  condition  of  membership;  and  become  political  hucksters 
instead  of  gospel  ministers;  then  even  our  motives  would  be 
suspected,  and  we  looked  upon  with  contempt  for  our  cowardly 
truckling  to  party  and  power. 

Again  we  affirm  that  our  itinerant  system  has  become  a  great 
moral  agency  in  elevating  the  masses  of  the  people,  preaching 
the  gospel  to  the  poor  and  "  spreading  scriptural  holiness  over 
these  lands."  Under  its  wide-spread  operations  we  have  gath- 
ered the  people  together,  planted  Churches,  organized  Sabbath- 
schools,  acquired  Church  property,  built  up  and  endowed  insti- 
tutions of  learning,  and  become  a  moral  and  religious  element 
of  the  country  at  least  equal  to  any  other  Protestant  Church. 

The  people  have  learned  to  look  to  our  ministry  for  the  gos- 
pel, to  our  Churches  and  Sunday-schools  for  religious  instruc- 
tion, and  to  our  influence  in  restraining  vice,  encouraging  virt- 
ue, maintaining  law  and  order,  and  promoting  the  well-being 
of  society.  We  cannot,  therefore,  abandon  our  Church  and 
people,  or  betray  the  interests  and  trusts  committed  to  us  as  a 
Church,  without  a  plain  and  culpable  disregard  of  duty  that 
would  subject  us  to  the  contempt  and  derision  of  the  Christian 
public. 

We  are  not  at  liberty  to  dissolve  our  ecclesiastical  organiza- 
tion or  permit  our  Church  to  be  absorbed  by  any  other,  even 
should  we  desire  to  do  so,  for  our  people  have  been  consulted 
as  far  as  practicable,  and  they  are  unwilling  to  seek  any  other 
Church  connection,  but  with  great  unanimity  demand  at  our 
hands  the  maintenance  of  our  Church  organization  Intact. 

It  is,  therefore,  due  the  great  mass  of  the  people  who  op- 
pose the  prostitution  of  the  pulpit  to  political  purposes,  it  is  due 
12 


178  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1864-65. 

to  our  large  membership  who  have  been  converted  and  gath- 
ered into  the  fold  of  Christ  under  our  ministry,  and  who  love 
our  Church  doctrines  and  discipline  too  fondly  to  seek  any 
other  fold  now — it  is  due  every  principle  of  self-respect  and  ec- 
clesiastical propriety  that  we  maintain,  with  firm  reliance  upon 
the  help  of  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church,  our  organization 
without  embarrassment  or  compromise. 

While  these  are  some  of  the  many  reasons  why  we  should 
adopt  the  above  resolution,  we  desire  most  ardently  to  cultivate 
fraternal  relations  with  all  the  evangelical  Churches,  and  "as 
much  as  in  us  lies  live  peaceably  with  all  men." 

WM.  M.  LEFTWICH,  Chairman; 
JOHN  D.  VINCIL, 
WM.  M.  NEWLAND. 

After  proper  investigation,  rigid  criticism,  and 
animated  discussion,  the  resolution  with  the  accom- 
panying paper  was  almost  unanimously  adopted. 
The  influence  of  the  action  of  the  meeting  was 
very  great  indeed,  and  extended  throughout  the 
entire  Connection.  As  formerly  stated,  the  whole 
Church  was  anxiously  waiting  and  looking  and 
praying  for  something  of  the  kind ;  and  when  it 
came  it  was  like  the  voice  of  God  among  his  peo- 
ple saying  to  them,  as  he  said  to  Joshua,  "  Get  thee 
up;  wherefore  liest  thou  thus  upon  thy  face?" 
and  as  God  went  with  Israel's  hosts  leading  them 
forth  from  conquest  to  victory  and  from  victory  to 
triumph,  so  he  has  been  with  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  ever  since  the  war,  investing  her  with*  di- 
vine power  and  clothing  her  with  salvation.  See 
what  a  history  she  has  made  since  A.D.  1865  ! 

The  glad  tidings   of  great  joy  went  from  Pal-  f 
myra  on  the  wings  of  the  wind  and  with  lightning 
flash.     Sooner  than  you  could  imagine  it  was  all 


1864-65.  Missouri  Conference.  179 

over  the  South  and  West,  like  the  rising  sun, 
with  his  golden  beams  of  radiant  light,  dispelling 
darkness  and  driving  away  all  gloom  and  sadness. 

"  Bishop  Kavanaugh  reported  that  the  people  of 
the  whole  South  felt  and  acknowledged  the  power 
of  the  Palmyra  meeting  upon  the  tone  and  spirit 
of  the  Church,  and  that  it  did  much  to  shape  the 
policy  of  the  bishops  and  leading  men  of  the 
Church.  Bishop  Marvin  said  that  the  report  of 
the  Palmyra  meeting  was  to  Southern  Methodism 
in  Texas  like  the  clarion  notes  of  a  mighty  chief- 
tain calling  the  scattered  knights  to  duty  and  to 
danger,  and  inspiring  the  courage  and  confidence 
of  the  Church  throughout  the  whole  South.  In 
Virginia  and  the  Carolinas,  according  to  the  Epis- 
copal Methodist,  of  Richmond,  Va.,  it  was  like 
'life  from  the  dead.'  " 

Yes,  indeed,  it  was  "  life  from  the  dead,"  caus- 
ing the  great  heart  of  Southern  Methodism  to 
throb  with  joy  unutterable. 

Daughter  of  Zion,  from  the  dust 

Exalt  thy  fallen  head; 
Again  in  thy  Redeemer  trust; 

He  calls  thee  from  the  dead. 

Awake,  awake !  put  on  thy  strength, 

Thy  beautiful  array ; 
The  day  of  freedom  dawns  at  length, 

The  Lord's  appointed  day. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Remove  All  Outside  Restraints,  and  Every  Man  Will  Show 
What  He  Is — Persecution  Continues  under  the  "Test  Oath" 
of  the  New  Constitution — Ministers  of  the  Gospel  Refuse  to 
Take  It — Forty-ninth  Annual  Session  of  the  Missouri  Con- 
ference at  Hannibal — Minute  Business — Six  Deaths  in  the 
Conference  During  the  Year:  W.  G.  Caples,  Edwin  Robin- 
son, William  Ketron,  John  F.  Young,  George  L.  Sexton,  and 
D.  R.  Smith — Biographical  Sketch  of  Each  One — Preachers 
Blessed  in  Their  Work — Report  of  a  Committee  of  the  Mis- 
souri Conference  on  the  State  of  the  Church — Persecution 
of  Rev.  W.  A.  Tarwater — His  Own  Account  of  It — St.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate  on  the  State  of  Things — Trial  of  Rev.J. 
A.  Mumpower — Rev.  John  D.  Vincil — Wise  Counsel  of  the 
67.  Louis  Christian  Advocate — The  Church  at  Lexington. 

WE  have  followed  the  history  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  through  the  fierce  and 
fiery  ordeal  of  an  internecine  war  and  reign  of 
terrors — Such  times  as  tried  the  principles  and 
souls  of  men  and  revealed  to  the  world  their  true 
character.  Remove  all  extraneous  restraints,  civil, 
social,  and  religious,  from  a  man,  and  you  will  see 
exactly  what  he  is.  His  base,  vile,  and  wicked 
nature  is  concealed  from  public  view  because  he  is 
afraid  of  the  civil  law,  of  public  sentiment,  and  of 
the  righteous  influence  of  Christianity.  Let  these 
restraints  be  taken  away,  and  there  will  be  an  out- 
ward manifestation  of  the  malicious  passions  of  his 
heart.  The  reader  certainly  did  not  fail  to  see  a 
(180) 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  181 

verification  and  exemplification  of  this  truth  during 
the  war.  Some  who  were  considered  good,  moral, 
and  religious  men  before  the  war  manifested  a 
very  vindictive  spirit  of  cruel  persecution  during 
the  war.  This  they  did  very  much  to  the  astonish- 
ment of  their  friends  and  acquaintances. 

There  is  no  difficulty,  however,  in  the  explana- 
tion. The  war  gave  them  an  opportunity  of  devel- 
oping their  true  character  by  removing  the  re- 
straints of  which  we  have  just  spoken.  The  war 
itself  was  wicked.  It  violated  the  principles  of  the 
gospel  and  the  example  and  teachings  of  Christ. 
It  contained  the  elements  of  diabolism,  and  antag- 
onized Christianity  at  every  point.  It  called  forth 
the  most  degraded  passions  of  fallen  humanity; 
emnity,  malice,  hatred,  revenge,  taking  pleasure  in 
the  shedding  of  blood  and  the  work  of  destruction. 
The  devil  incarnate  is  under  no  restraint  in  a  civil 
war.  Nothing  is  so  demoralizing,  and  its  demoral- 
ization, deep  and  wide-spread,  has  continued  in 
our  country  ever  since  the  war. 

Though  the  Civil  War  has  ended  and  peace 
has  been  declared,  yet  there  is  a  continuation  of 
strife,  of  serious  trouble,  and  malignant  persecution 
in  Missouri,  caused  by  the  ministers  refusing  to 
take  the  "  test  oath"  of  the  new  Constitution.  As 
they  could  not  take  it  conscientiously,  they  would 
not  take  it  at  all.  As  they  had  not  been  called  on 
to  take  such  an  oath  before  the  war,  and  as  their 
loyalty  to  the  government  could  not  be  called  in 
question  since  the  war,  they  saw  no  sense  or  pro- 


182  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

priety  in  taking  it.  They  knew,  furthermore,  that 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  as  well  as 
that  of  their  own  State  protected  them  in  their 
preaching  and  religious  worship.  Hence  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  United  States  pronounced  said 
oath  unconstitutional.  More  than  all  this,  they 
recognized  the  great  fact  that  they  received  their 
authority  to  preach  the  gospel  from  God,  who  said 
to  them:  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach 
the  gospel  to  every  creature."  Under  the  sanction 
of  high  Heaven  and  fully  invested  with  the  author- 
ity of  God  to  preach  the  word,  they  could  not  let 
themselves  down  so  low  as  to  ask  for  man's  author- 
ity ;  and  because  they  would  not  take  an  unconsti- 
tutional oath  they  were  persecuted  and  some  of 
them  put  to  death. 

On  the  i6th  day  of  August,  1865,  the  forty- 
ninth  annual  session  of  the  Missouri  Conference 
was  opened  by  Bishop  Kavanaugh  at  Hannibal, 
Mo.  John  D.  Vincil  was  elected  Secretary.  The 
long  and  disastrous  war  having  terminated,  the 
members  of  the  Conference  congratulate^  one  an- 
other on  the  occasion  of  meeting  once  more  through 
the  protection  and  guardianship  of  a  kind  and 
merciful  Providence.  All  joined  in  the  voice  of 
prayer  and  praise  and  thanksgiving  to  Almighty 
God  for  having  brought  them  safely  through  the 
perils  of  the  past,  and  for  the  encouraging  pros- 
pects of  the  future,  though  they  might  yet  meet 
with  trouble  and  persecution  in  some  of  their  fields 
of  labor. 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  183 

Joseph  Metcalf  and  George  Primrose  were  ad- 
mitted on  trial.  Thompson  Penn,  John  A.  Mum- 
power,  James  Smith,  J.  S.  Allen,  and  B.  F.  Zum- 
walt  remained  on  trial.  The  following  traveling 
preachers  were  elected  and  ordained  deacons: 
Samuel  J.  Huffaker,  James  O.  Swinney,  Samuel 
Alexander,  John  W.  Atkisson,  and  Charles  W. 
Collet.  The  following  local  preachers  were  elect- 
ed and  ordained  deacons:  J.  Metcalf,  John  Ste- 
phens, and  F.  R.  Milton.  The  following  traveling 
preachers  were  elected  and  ordained  elders:  J.  R. 
Taylor,  George  Penn,  Charles  W.  Collet,  John 
F.  Shores,  B.  N.  T.  Holliday,  and  A.  Albright. 
One  local  preacher,  Samuel  Briggs,  was  elected 
and  ordained  elder.  The  following  were  super- 
numerary: P.  M.  Pinckard,  Tyson  Dines,  S.  J. 
Catlin,  A.  Albright,  George  Fenton,  Jesse  Faubion, 
N.  P.  Lynn,  W.  M.  Sutton,  R.  A.  Claughton,  R. 
H.  Jordan,  C.  W.  Pritchett,  William  Warren,  Wal- 
ter Toole,  S.  J.  Huffaker,  James  Penn,  M.  R. 
Jones,  D.  Mason,  and  H.  G.  McEwin.  The  su- 
perannuated were  Martin  L.  Eady,  W.  M.  Wood, 
and  D.  C.  Blackwell. 

There  was  unusual  fatality  in  the  Conference 
during  the  past  year — not  less  than  six  deaths: 
W.  G.  Caples,  Edwin  Robinson,  William  Ketron, 
John  F.  Young,  George  L.  Sexton,  and  D.  R. 
Smith,  some  of  whom  died  a  natural  death,  while 
others  died  martyrs  for  the  truth  of  the  gos- 
pel. All  these  faithful  embassadors  of  God  de- 
serve a  name  in  history,  and  our  notice  of  them 


184  Methodism  in  Missouri,  186^-66. 

shall  be  in  accordance  with  the  best  and  most  re- 
liable information  we  can  obtain. 

The  report  of  the  Committee  on  Memoirs,  as 
published  in  the  Conference  Minutes,  is  exceed- 
ingly brief,  and  gives  but  little  information  con- 
cerning these  ministers.  The  information  is  good 
as  far  as  it  goes,  but  it  does  not  go  far  enough.  A 
satisfactory  and  condensed  history  of  the  ministers 
of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  is  very  desirable.  We 
shall  be  compelled  to  confine  ourselves  to  the  Min- 
utes when  we  can  find  no  other  source  of  informa- 
tion. This  last  remark  will  enable  the  friends  to 
understand  why  some  of  the  biographies  are  so 
short  and  inadequate  to  the  importance  of  the  sub- 
ject : 

William  Ketron,  presiding  elder  of  the  Gallatin  District,  a 
veteran  itinerant  and  indefatigable  servant  of  the  Church,  has 
passed  away.  He  fell  at  his  post,  his  face  to  the  foe,  with  his 
armor  on.  He  died  as  he  lived,  full  of  faith,  exclaiming  (the 
last  words  he  spoke):  "All  is  well!" 

John  F.  Young,  an  old  and  deeply  afflicted  superannuated 
preacher,  has  ceased  to  suffer  within  the  last  few  weeks.  His 
sweet-spiritedness  while  living,  his  resignation  when  dying, 
and  his  desire  to  depart  and  be  with  Christ  but  illustrate  the 
power  of  that  religion  he  professed  and  taught  so  long. 

David  R.  Smith,  a  probationer,  sweetly  fell  asleep  in  Jesus 
one  month  after  receiving  his  first  appointment. 

REV.  GEORGE  L.  SEXTON 

was  an  unusually  interesting  young  man  and  full 
of  promise.  Every  thing  seemed  to  be  in  his  favor. 
The  Church  looked  upon  him  hopefully  and  ex- 
pected much  of  him.  But  alas!  his  hopes  were 
blasted,  and  the  promising  fruit  was  nipped  in  the 


1665-66.  Missouri  Conference.  185 

bud.     Read  the  sad  account  of  his  sufferings  and 
mysterious  end: 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  George  L.  Sexton,  was  born  in 
Missouri  July  10,  1839.  He  was  married  in  September,  1860; 
commenced  preaching  in  his  seventeenth  year,  and  from  the  first 
gave  evidence  of  no  ordinary  talent.  His  preaching  attracted 
the  eyes  and  inspired  the  hope  of  the  Church  to  an  extent  not 
usual  in  every  "  boy  preacher." 

He  was  physically  small,  but  possessed  of  a  nervous  tempera- 
ment equal  to  the  vigorous  action  of  the  largest  brain.  Ener- 
getic and  rapid  in  all  his  movements,  studious  and  practical 
in  all  his  mental  habits,  accurate  and  sharp  in  his  perceptions, 
and  with  a  ready  and  fluent  utterance  and  deep,  earnest  piety,  he 
bid  fair  to  make  a  preacher  equal  to  any  work  and  acceptable  to 
any  people.  The  pledges  of  extensive  usefulness  were  only 
equaled  by  the  fields  that  were  white  unto  the  harvest,  which  in 
every  direction  invited  his  polished  sickle. 

When  the  war  broke  out  Mr.  Sexton  was  in  charge  of  the 
Memphis  Circuit,  Missouri  Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South. 
The  fact  that  he  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher  was  suffi- 
cient to  secure  the  attention  and  the  threats  of  the  superloyal- 
ists  of  that  portion  of  the  State. 

Irresponsible  parties  annoyed  him  and  threatened  his  life  un- 
til he  thought  it  best  to  leave  that  part  of  the  country  and  seek 
safety  elsewhere. 

He  went  to  Boone  County,  and  for  a  time  supplied  the  Stur- 
geon Circuit.  But  here  he  was  by  no  means  free  from  molesta- 
tion. In  fact,  there  was  no  part  of  the  State  of  Missouri  where 
a  Southern  Methodist  preacher  could  feel  safe  during  the  whole 
war,  unless  it  was  in  St.  Louis. 

In  June,  1862,  while  on  his  way  to  Bishop's  School-house,  to 
fill  an  appointment,  he  was  arrested  by  a  company  of  "  Merrill's 
Horse,"  as  they  were  called,  commanded  by  Capt.  Stewart,  taken 
to  Columbia,  and  put  in  prison.  Every  effort  made  by  his  father 
and  others  to  obtain  his  release  was  met  by  insult.  Both  Mer- 
rill and  his  officers  heaped  upon  Mr.  Sexton  every  indignity 
that  wicked  men  could  invent.  The  fact  that  he  was  a  South- 
ern Methodist  preacher  was  enough  in  their  prejudice  and  mal 
ice  to  send  him  to  Alton  Military  Prison  for  the  war.  After  re- 


1 86  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1665-66. 

maining  in  prison  for  some  time,  he,  with  others,  made  his  escape 
and  went  South,  well  knowing  that  he  could  not  remain  here  in 
safety. 

While  in  the  South,  away  from  home,  without  employment 
or  means,  he  accepted  a  chaplaincy  in  the  army  for  a  time. 
This,  however,  he  soon  resigned,  and  after  an  absence  of  eight- 
een months  started  home  to  see  his  wife  and  little  ones;  but  be- 
fore reaching  home  he  was  arrested  and  sent  to  Alton,  III., 
where  he  remained  for  several  months  in  that  loathsome  pest- 
house. 

His  health  was  very  poor,  and  his  physical  constitution  was 
last  giving  wav  under  the  treatment  at  that  noted  military  pris- 
on. Friends  interested  themselves  in  his  behalf,  and  he  was 
finally  released  and  permitted  to  reach  his  home.  He  remained 
at  home  with  his  family  several  months,  trying  to  follow  peace 
with  all  men,  and  prosecute,  in  a  quiet,  humble  way,  his  mission 
of  mercv  to  dying  men,  avoiding  every  thing  that  would  seem 
officious  or  that  would  be  offensive  to  the  most  uncompromising 
partisan;  yet  he  met  only  insult,  indignity. and  denunciation, ac- 
companied by  such  threats  as  led  him  to  feel  that  his  life  was  in 
imminent  peril  all  the  time.  Believing  that  he  could  not  re- 
main at  home  in  Missouri  in  safety,  he  again  started  South. 
His  purpose  was  to  gain  a  place  of  personal  safety,  and  not  to 
take  up  arms  against  the  government.  The  idea  of  fighting  his 
fellow-men  was  so  repulsive  to  his  feelings  and  views  of  the 
character  and  work  of  a  minister  of  the  gospel  that  he  sought 
only  personal  safety  and  religious  liberty.  While  traveling  with 
a  friend,  and  near  the  Arkansas  line,  both  unarmed  and  uncon- 
scious of  danger,  they  were  discovered  and  shot  down  by  a  squad 
of  Federal  soldiers.  His  friend  was  instantly  killed,  and  Mr. 
Sexton  was  severely — perhaps  mortally — wounded.  The  ball 
took  effect  in  the  shoulder.  The  citizens  removed  him  to  a 
house  near  by,  and  kindly  cared  for  him,  dressing  his  wound 
and  ministering  unto  him.  But  another  squad  of  Federal  sol- 
diers found  him,  ascertained  that  he  was  a  Southern  Methodist 
preacher,  and,  though  informed  that  he  could  not  possibly  live, 
took  him  away ;  and  he  tvas  never  heard  of  after-Mard.  Where 
they  carried  him  nobody  knows.  \Vhen,  where,  and  how  he 
died,  and  where  he  was  buried — if  at  all — are  known  only  to  the 
perpetrators  of  the  horrible  deed  and  to  the  all-seeing  eye.  One 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  187 

comforting  message  comes  to  the  sorrowing  parents  and  grief- 
stricken  widow,  like  "  good  news  from  a  far  country,"  from  the 
family  to  whose  house  he  was  carried  after  he  was  shot.  They 
say  he  conversed  freely  while  there,  and  frequently  said  he  was 
not  afraid  to  die — that  all  was  well.* 

Of  Rev.  Edwin  Robinson  we  have  the  following 
notice: 

Mr.  Robinson  was  received  on  trial  into  the  Missouri  Annual 
Confe-ence,  M.  E.  Church,  in  1837,  with  Thomas  D.  Clanton, 
Daniel  T.  Sherman,  F.  W.  Mitchell,  and  James  G.  F.  Dunlany. 
His  first  appointment  was  junior  preacher  on  the  Greenville  Cir- 
cuit, in  the  Boonville  District,  with  Moses  B.  Evans  his  senior, 
and  Jesse  Green  presiding  elder. 

He  received  regular  appointments  from  the  Conference  every 
year,  and  filled  them  acceptably  and  usefully  to  the  Church.  In 
1852  he  was  made  presiding  elder  of  the  Richmond  District,  and 
for  several  years  filled  that  high  and  responsible  office  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  Church.  He  was  once  honored  with  a  seat 
in  the  General  Conference,  and  was  always  held  in  high  esteem 
by  the  ministry  and  the  Church. 

Wise  and  prudent  in  counsel,  and  thoroughly  Methodistic 
In  all  his  feelings,  sentiments,  and  practice,  he  ever  conserved 
the  best  interests  of  the  Church  of  his  choice.  He  was  not 
very  brilliant  in  the  pulpit,  but  sound,  practical,  earnest,  and 
useful.  So  widely  known,  he  is  now  as  widely  lamented. 

When  the  -war  broke  out  he  saw  the  necessity  of  great  cau- 
tion and  prudence  in  all  his  public  services  and  private  ways. 
He  refrained  scrupulously  from  canvassing  the  exciting  events 
that  were  so  rapidly  transpiring.  And  his  very  humble,  quiet, 
unobstrusive  spirit  and  manner  of  life  passed  him  through  the 
troubles  of  the  war  about  as  evenly  and  safely  as  any  other 
prominent  Southern  Methodist  minister  in  the  State,  out  of  St. 
Louis,  up  to  the  fatal  hour  of  his  cold,  cruel  murder. 

In  the  fall  of  1864  Mr.  Robinson  was  residing  about  two  miles 
south  of  Fayette,  in  Howard  County,  and  traveling  the  Fayette 
Circuit.  He  had  formerly  lived  in  Chillicothe,  and  when  the 
troubles  of  the  fall  thickened  and  darkened  around  him  soalarm- 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


i88  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

ingly  he  make  up  his  mind  to  remove  his  family  either  back  to 
Chillicothe  or  into  Grundy  County,  where  his  wife  had  some 
relatives  living. 

For  this  purpose  he  determined  to  precede  his  family  and 
provide  a  home.  Before  setting  out  on  the  journey  his  wife 
prevailed  on  him,  in  view  of  the  danger  of  traveling  through 
the  country,  to  go  by  way  of  Renick  and  take  the  North  Mis- 
souri railroad.  He  afterward,  however,  abandoned  that  route 
and  set  out  in  company  with  a  colored  man  who  lived  in  Chilli- 
cothe and  had  a  wife  at  his  home,  and  in  whom  he  had  the  ut- 
most confidence.  Instead  of  going  through  Glasgow,  they  took 
a  nearer  and  safer  route  through  Monticello  and  Old  Chariton. 
When  thev  reached  the  latter  place,  only  two  miles  from  Glas- 
gow, they  halted  for  a  few  moments  in  front  of  Moore's  Hotel 
talking  with  some  gentlemen,  when  a  squad  of  soldiers,  com- 
manded by  Capt.  Merrideth,  rode  rapidly  up,  and  the  following 
colloquy  was  had: 

Captain:  "Who  and  what  are  you?" 

"  My  name  is  Robinson,  and  I  am  a  Methodist  preacher." 

Captain:  "A  Southern  Methodist  preacher?" 

"  Yes,  sir." 

"  That,  sir,  is  enough  to  damn  you,"  said  the  valiant  captain 
excitedly,  and  turning  to  his  men  said,  "  Blow  his  damned  brains 
out,"  which  was  instantly  done. 

These  facts  were  reported  by  the  negro,  to  which  some  ladies 
who  at  the  time  were  looking  out  at  the  window  make  the  fol- 
lowing addition:  They  say  that  after  the  above  conversation, 
and  before  any  order  was  given  to  shoot,  Mr.  Robinson  and  the 
negro  were  permitted  to  ride  on.  After  they  had  gone  about 
fifty  yards  Capt.  Merrideth  called  the  negro  back  and  asked  him 
what  he  knew  about  Robinson.  He  replied  that  he  knew  noth- 
ing about  Robinson's  politics,  but  that  he  had  a  very  bad  son 
who  was  a  bush-whacker,  upon  which  Merrideth  dashed  up  to 
Robinson  and  either  shot  him  himself  or  ordered  his  men  to  do 
it.  As  to  who  did  the  shooting  the  ladies  are  not  fully  agreed, 
nor  is  it  important.  Captain  Merrideth  was  in  command,  and 
the  public  verdict  of  the  people  as  well  as  the  verdict  of  history 
will  hold  him  responsible. 

He  rode  away  from  his  victim  after  leaving  an  order  that  his 
body  should  not  be  removed  on  pain  of  death.  For  some  reason 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  189 

the  captain  did  not  'take  the  dead  man's  horse,  and  the  noble 
animal  stood  in  silence  and  alone  beside  the  body  of  his  mas- 
ter whom  he  had  so  long  borne,  now  pulseless,  lifeless. 

The  ladies,  true  to  the  instincts  of  a  finer,  purer  nature,  and 
the  warmer  sympathies  and  loftier  courage  of  humanity,  not- 
withstanding the  general  terror  and  panic  of  the  citizens,  went 
out  and  pulled  rails  from  the  fence  and  make  a  rude  pen  around 
the  dead  man  to  prevent  the  hogs  from  profaning  his  body,  and 
then  sent  a  message  to  Mrs.  Thompson,  of  Glasgow,  informing 
her  of  the  facts.  This  good  lady  caused  a  two-horse  wagon  u> 
be  prepared,  and  with  several  other  "  elect  ladies,"  attended  by 
two  gentlemen,  went  out  the  following  morning,  which  was  the 
Sabbath,  and  brought  his  body  into  the  city.  His  wife  was 
summoned  to  look  upon  and  follow  to  the  grave  the  mangled 
remains  of  her  beloved  companion.  Such  was  the  reign  of 
terror  that  the  citizens  of  Glasgow  were  afraid  to  receive  the 
bodv  of  the  departed  minister  of  God  into  their  house.  His  body 
was  placed  in  the  Christian  Church,  and  the  next  day,  Monday, 
followed  to  the  town  of  Fayette  by  the  disconsolate  widow  and 
a  few  silent  mourners  and  deposited  in  the  cemetery.* 

This  present  writer,  who  at  that  time  had  charge 
of  the  Howard  College,  attended  his  sad  burial. 
He  saw  Mr.  Robinson  when  he  left  Fayette  with 
the  negro  Saturday  morning,  on  his  way  to  Chilli- 
cothe,  and  remarked  at  the  time  that  he  was  mak- 
ing a  very  perilous  trip.  He  who  looked  so  digni- 
fied and  manly  that  morning  on  his  fine  horse  as 
he  left  Fayette  in  a  few  hours  was  dead,  shot 
through  the  head  because  he  was  a  Southern  Meth- 
odist preacher. 

Fifty-five  preachers  were  sent  out  by  the  Con- 
ference to  their  respective  fields  of  labor,  God 
wonderfully  blessed  their  work  during  the  past  year 
with  many  and  extensive  revivals  of  religion.  Al- 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


190  Methodism  in  Missouri  1865-66. 

most  every  number  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advo- 
cate gave  encouraging  notices  of  the  great  things 
God  was  doing  for  them,  in  the  conviction  of  sin- 
ners, the  conversion  of  believing  penitents,  and  the 
edification  of  the  Church.  Though  troubles  beset 
them  on  all  sides,  though  opposition  of  various  kinds 
met  them  almost  everywhere  they  went,  God  was 
with  them. 

Thus  encouraged  by  the  experience  of  the  past 
year,  they  went  forth  with  renewed  consecration 
and  stronger  purpose  of  heart  to  preach  the  gos- 
pel in  its  simplicity,  purity,  and  divine  power,  with 
greater  zeal  and  earnestness  than  they  had  ever 
done  before. 

The  following  paper — sensible,  strong,  and  on 
the  basis  of  Christian  love,  truth,  and  righteous- 
ness— will  be  read  with  interest  : 

REPORT  OF  A  COMMITTEE  OF  THE  MISSOURI  CONFERENCE  ON 
THE  STATE  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

At  the  late  session  of  the  Missouri  Annual  Conference,  held 
at  Hannibal,  beginning  on  the  i6thof  August,  among  other  inter- 
esting proceedings,  was  the  following  report  of  a  committee  ap- 
pointed to  consider  the  present  state  of  the  country  in  the  bounds 
of  that  Conference,  which  it  may  be  well  to  say  include  all  that 
part  of  the  State  of  Missouri  lying  north  of  the  Missouri  River. 
The  report  was  presented  to  the  Conference  and  adopted  unani- 
mously. It  is  difficult  to  say  how  the  questions  considered  could 
have  been  expressed  or  discussed  in  a  more  clear  or  satisfactory 
manner.  The  report  shows  the  members  of  the  Mission  Con- 
ference to  be  true  men,  sensible  men  of  correct  feelings  and 
sound  views.  Read  the  report  carefully  and  consider  it  well, 
especially  that  part  which  refers  to  the  word  "  South,"  as  affixed 
to  the  name  of  the  Church.  When  you  have  read  and  consid- 
ered it  then  ask  yourself:  What  is  the  spirit  that  moves  many 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  191 

who  call  themselves  Christians  to  speak  and  write  and  act  as 
they  do  in  regard  to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  which  as  a 
Church  is  confessedly  one  of  the  most  evangelical  and  unsecu- 
larized  Christian  denominations  in  all  the  land. 

The  report  is  as  follows  : 

"In  calling  attention  to  this  subject,  the  first  thing  worthy  of 
note  is  its  imminently  perilous  condition.  Never  were  the 
signs  of  a  violent  persecution  of  the  Church  and  the  ministry 
of  God  more  manifest.  Never  since  the  days  of  bloody  perse- 
cution has  opposition  to  the  Church  a-nd  ministry,  and  to  our 
common  Christianity,  been  so  bold,  so  defiant,  so  well  organ- 
ized, and  so  bitter  and  determined  as  now.  Never  in  modern 
times  have  combinations  against  the  character,  claims,  and  cause 
of  the  Redeemer  seemed  to  be  so  strong,  or  wore  such  a  threat- 
ening aspect.  Truly  the  kings  of  the  earth  have  set  them- 
selves, and  the  rulers  take  counsel  against  the  Lord  and  against 
his  Christ.  (Ps.  ii.  2.)  Truly  the  people  of  God  will  be  called 
to  wrestle  with  principalities  and  powers,  and  with  the  rulers  of 
the  darkness  of  this  world,  and  with  spiritual  wickedness  in 
high  places  ;  but  the  weapons  of  our  warfare  are  not  carnal,  but 
mighty  through  God. 

"  In  the  afflictions  which  have  come  upon  the  Church  of  God 
in  Missouri  our  denomination  has  had  a  double  share,  and  in 
persecutions  yet  to  come  we  are  singled  out  for  special  atten- 
tion. We  have  been  singled  as  a '  secession,  traitorous,  and  rebel 
organization ; '  as  unworthy  of  civil  protection ;  and,  indeed,  as 
only  deserving  to  be  suppressed  and  destroyed  by  the  govern- 
ment. 

"  This  has  been  done  not  only  by  those  in  low,  but  also  by 
those  in  high  and  commanding  positions.  Some  of  our  houses 
of  worship  have  been  burned,  others  dismantled  and  otherwise 
injured  and  destro'ved.  Of  the  use  of  others  we  have  been 
forcibly  deprived  for  months,  and  even  for  years;  and  the  most 
painful  fact  in  this  bill  of  complaint  is  that  the  latter  has  fre- 
quently been  done  by  men  professing  to  be  Christian  ministers! 
These  men  have  come  into  our  own  pulpits,  and  taken  posses- 
sion of  our  houses  of  worship,  against  and  in  defiance  of  our 
wishes,  and  retain  and  use  them  in  open  -violation  of  our  rights. 
Some  of  our  ministers  and  members  have  fallen  by  the  hand  of 
violence,  while  others  have  had  to  flee  for  their  lives. 


192  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

"  The  principal  reason  assigned  for  the  bitter  persecution  with 
which  we  have  been  assailed  is  the  word  South  affixed  to  our 
ecclesiastical  name.  The  charge  has  been  made  and  repeated 
until  it  has  grown  threadbare,  that  this  word  in  our  name  means 
secession,  treason,  and  rebellion;  and  hence  there  is  nothing  more 
common  than  for  our  enemies  to  call  us  the  Rebel  Ckurch.  And 
what  is  more  surprising  than  all  is  that  any  man  of  intelligence 
or  candor  should  profess  to  believe,  or  for  a  moment  be  influ- 
enced by,  an  allegation  so  untrue  to  history  and  so  mischievous 
in  its  design.  It  seems  not  to  have  occurred  to  some  men,  of 
whom  we  had  expected  better  things,  that  it  is  possible  for  bad 
men,  under  professed  loyalty  to  the  government,  to  slander  those 
who  are  better  than  themselves.  It  has  been  said  by  men  in  high 
official  positions  in  this  State  that  if  these  charges  are  not  true 
we  are  to  blame  for  not  having  made  some  effort  to  set  our- 
selves right  before  the  community.  Now  the  fact  is  simply  this: 
We  have  made  frequent  efforts  to  define  our  ecclesiastical  posi- 
tion, but  for  the  last  few  years  passion  and  prejudice  have  been 
so  strongly  excited  against  us  that  our  statements  and  appeals 
have  been  disregarded.  We  wish  to  say  then,  distinctly  and 
emphatically,  that  the  word  South,  as  it  attaches  to  our  ecclesi- 
astical name,  never  did,  and  docs  not  no-v,  have  any  political  signifi- 
cance -whatever.  It  is  simply  an  affix  to  the  name  of  our  Church 
indicating  the  geographical  limits  of  our  ecclesiastical  juris- 
diction. 

"  In  the  Plan  of  Separation  of  the  'original  Methodist  Church 
in  America '  into '  two  General  Conference  jurisdictions,'  adopted 
in  1844,  the  word  '  South'  was  applied  to  that  part  of  the  M.  E. 
Church  which  lay  in  the  South  to  distinguish  it  from  that  part 
which  lay  in  the  North,  with  the  mutual  understanding  and 
pledge  that  neither  of  these  two  should  invade  the  territory  of 
the  other.  It  was  employed  to  distinguish  a  Church  existing 
and  operating  on  the  south  side  of  a  line  from  one  existing  and 
operating  on  the  north  side  of  the  same  line ;  and,  furthermore, 
this  word  was  attached  to  our  name  sixteen  or  seventeen  years 
before  it  could  have  had  the  political  meaning  which  some  seek 
to  give  it.  The  above  statement  is  not  only  true,  but  plain 
enough,  certainly,  to  be  understood  by  the  most  ordinary  mind. 

"In  this  defense  of  our  Church  we  do  not  wish  to  excuse  or 
justify  any  conduct  upon  the  part  of  our  ministers  or  members 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  193 

that  may  have  given  just  cause  for  complaint,  but  do  disapprove 
and  regret  the  same.  The  truth  is  there  is  no  Christian  de- 
nomination in  Missouri,  or  in  the  Southern  States,  of  equal 
numbers,  from  whose  association  fewer  persons  have  gone  into 
the  rebellion  than  have  gone  from  ours.  Now,  how  can  this 
fact  be  accounted  for  if  this  word  in  our  name  be  the  mischiev- 
ous thing  some  say  it  is?  It  is  not  of  doctrinal  or  political,  but  of 
geographical  andjiirisdictional  import.  But  it  may  be  inquired, 
if  the  doctrine  and  discipline  of  the  two  Churches  be  the  same, 
why  keep  up  the  Southern  organization  at  all?  Whv  not  all  be 
one?  We  answer  that  the  reasons  for  keeping  up  our  organi- 
zation are  weighty  and  urgent:  i.  More  than  half  a  million  of 
souls  look  to  us  for  the  word  of  light  and  hold  us  in  honor  and 
duty  bound  to  give  it  to  them.  2.  Thousands  upon  thousands 
will  not  only  be  lost  to  Methodism,  but,  what  is  infinitely  worse, 
will  be  lost  to  Christ  and  to  heaven,  if  we  do  not  sustain  our 
organization  as  the  means  of  promoting  their  salvation.  3.  There 
are  multiplied  thousands  in  the  Southern  States,  and  elsewhere, 
who  will  perish  in  their  sins  if  they  are  not  saved  through  our 
instrumentality,  for  they  will  hear  no  other  ministers  and  can  be 
reached  by  no  other  organization;  and  in  this  view  of  the  sub- 
ject, no  Christian,  no  philanthropist,  or  lover  of  his  country 
ought  to  wish  or  ask  us  to  give  it  up. 

"  We  truly  regret,  as  we  have  ever  regretted,  that  there  ever 
should  have  been  a  necessity  for  the  organization  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  South;  but  the  necessities  of  the  case 
compelled  the  organization,  and  still  require  its  continuance. 
But  others  may  say  sustain  the  organization,  but  change  the 
name  by  leaving  out  the  word  South.  To  this  we  reply:  (i) 
That  while  we  devoutly  wish  it  were  otherwise,  yet  a  change  of 
our  name  would  not  change  the  hearts  and  conduct  of  our  perse- 
cutors toward  us.  (2)  A  change  of  name  can  only  be  effected 
by  the  General  Conference,  which  does  not  meet  until  April, 
1866.  (3)  A  change  of  name  would  involve  the  loss  of  all  our 
Church  property,  or  involve  a  great  deal  of  separate  State  leg- 
islation in  order  to  legalize  the  transfer.  (4)  A  change  of  name 
would  now  inevitably  produce  strife  and  dissatisfaction  in  our 
ranks;  hence,  however  desirable  such  change  may  be,  it  can- 
not now  be  satisfactorily  or  legally  made.  Therefore  let  us, 
with  meekness  of  wisdom,  Christian  prudence,  and  patient  en- 
13 


1 0,4  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

durance,  endeavor  to  sustain  our  organization  as  the  means  of 
promoting  the  interests  of  the  Messiah's  kingdom  upon  earth 
in  the  salvation  of  men.  We  should  be  the  more  encouraged 
to  do  this  in  view  of  the  fact  that,  notwithstanding  the  sore  tri- 
als and  persecutions  of  the  last  five  years,  by  the  blessing  of 
Almighty  God  our  organization  still  remains  intact.  This 
fact  itself  calls  for  gratitude  to  God,  and  furnishes  indubitable 
proof  that  the  '  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us,  and  that  the  God  of 
Jacob  is  our  refuge.'  When  we  had  no  one  but  God  to  plead 
our  cause,  or  vindicate  our  position,  or  to  support  us  under  the 
crushing  weight  of  persecution  by  which  we  were  assailed,  he 
sustained  us;  for  which  we  thank  his  holy  name  and  lake  cour- 
age. 

"As  to  the  temporal  condition  of  the  Church,  embracing  our 
educational  and  pecuniary  interests,  AVC  refer  you  to  the  reports 
of  the  respective  committees  on  those  subjects.  As  it  respects 
our  spiritual  state,  we  regret  to  say  that  it  is  far  from  what  it 
ought  to  be,  and  far  from  what  we  -visit  it  to  be.  And  yet,  with 
gratitude  to  God,  we  record  the  fact  that  we  embrace  within 
our  organization  in  Missouri  thousands  of  those  who  are  among 
the  most  intelligent  and  devoted  Christians  in  the  State. 

"In  conclusion,  your  committee  would  offer  for  your  adop- 
tion the  following  resolution: 

"Resolved,  That  we  still  hold  on  to  our  ecclesiastical  platform 
— viz.:  i.  Obedience  to  all  proper  authority,  whether  human  or 
divine.  2.  No  ecclesiastical  interference  with  political  ques- 
tions. 3.  The  observance  of  all  the  duties  growing  out  of  the 
established  relations  of  the  Society.  4.  The  preaching  of  the 
gospel  without  any  political  admixture. 

"All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted."* 

The  history  of  Methodism  in  Missouri  for  this 
Conference  year  would  be  incomplete  without  the 
names  of  those  preachers  who  passed  through 
great  persecutions  and  tribulations  on  account  of 
their  unswerving  fidelity  to  the  cause  of  their  Lord 
and  Master — men  who  could  not  be  intimidated 

•*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate,  September  21,  1865. 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  195 

or  moved  by  terrorism,  and  who  would  not  com- 
promise their  divine  call  to  preach  the  gospel, 
though  refusing  to  do  so  might  cost  them  their  lives. 

REV.  W.  A.  TARWATER. 

This  name  is  dear  to  the  hearts  of  all  the  preach- 
ers in  the  Missouri  Conference — a  noble  example 
of  a  consecrated  minister  of  Jesus  Christ — pos- 
sessed of  those  natural  gifts  and  Christian  quali- 
ties that  made  him  beloved  and  useful  wherever  he 
preached.  He  was  a  man  of  sterling  worth  and 
considerable  ability;  had  the  honor  of  being  a 
delegate  to  the  General  Conference  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South.  This  State  may  well  be  proud  of 
such  preachers,  of  whom  Missouri  has  furnished  a 
large  number.  His  ministerial  labors  were  great- 
ly blessed  of  God,  and  he  had  many  interesting 
revivals  in  which  scores  and  hundreds  of  sinners 
experienced  convicting  and  converting  grace.  He 
was  very  much  disturbed  in  his  ministerial  labors 
during  the  war,  of  which  he  gives  the  following 
statement: 

Religious  liberty  in  Missouri  has  come  to  an  end,  at  least 
so  far  as  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  North-east  Missouri  is 
concerned.  The  convention  oath  of  iS6i  has  been  prescribed 
and  administered;  but  the  heaviest  blow  was  struck  by  the  Dra- 
conian Constitution,  which  would  make  every  minister  of  the 
land  subscribe  to  an  oath  as  the  condition  of  his  continuing  in 
the  sacred  office.  I  had  made  up  my  mind,  on  my  knees,  that 
1  would  not  take  it;  for  I  would  not  have  taken  any  sort  of  an 
oath  from  any  civil  authority  as  the  condition  of  my  preaching. 

The  County  Court  of  Lewis  County,  Mo.,  was  now  in  ses- 
sion. I  received  a  message  purporting  to  come  from  a  county 
official,  running  about  thus:  "Sir;  Change  the  services  of  to- 


196  Methodism  in  Missouri.  186^-66. 

morrow  into  a  prayer-meeting,  and  thereby  secure  your  liberty 
another  six  month-." 

I  thought  it  would  be  rash  not  to  comply,  as  there  seemed 
to  be  a  promise  that  1  would  not  be  interfered  with  until  the 
following  term  of  the  Circuit  Court.  But  such  was  not  the 
case,  as  it  was  soon  noised  abroad  that  I  should  be  chastised  for 
not  hearing  and  obeying  the  voice  of  men.  We  had  a  prayer- 
meeting.  It  was  a  solemn  occasion.  The  congregation  never 
felt  the  force  of  civil  prohibition  as  they  then  felt  it.  The  Holy 
One  was  in  the  hearts  of  the  people.  I  had  already  refused  to 
perform  the  rites  of  matrimony  upon  the  generally  received 
opinion  that  it  was  a  civil  contract;  but  feeling  most  solemnly 
convinced  that  no  legislative  enactment  could  invade  the  pul- 
pit, I  only  refused  to  quit  preaching.  I  was  now  waited  on  by 
a  committee  (whether  self-constituted  or  sent  by  the  "Loval 
League  "  I  did  not  know;  but  so  strong  was  my  belief  that  the 
latter  was  true  that  I  did  not  ask  them).  They  informed  me 
that  I  must  "  leave  the  State,  take  the  oath  of  loyalty,  or  quit 
preaching."  I  replied,  in  substance,  as  follows:  "All  my  inter- 
ests are  in  Missouri;  my  friends  are  here;  it  is  the  State  of  my 
nativity,  and  I  feel  like  remaining,  laboring,  and  suffering  with 
the  Church  in  Missouri.  As  to  the  oath,  I  cannot  take  it;  for  if 
I  have  any  authority  to  preach,  I  received  it  from  a  higher 
court  than  any  civil  tribunal.  I  cannot  repudiate  that  authori- 
ty and  claim  to  be  an  embassador  of  Christ,  who  says:  «  Lo,  I 
am  with  you  alway.'  Again,  1  have  taken  the  oath  of  1861, 
which  bound  me  not  to  take  any  oath  of  any  Legislature  or 
convention  which  is  in  violation  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
I'nited  States;  and,  wilh  my  present  convictions,  I  cannot  take 
that  oath  w  ithout  being  a  perjured  man." 

On  leaving  they  informed  me  that  the  men  who  framed 
and  supported  that  instrument  were  the  men  who  put,  down 
the  rebellion,  and  that  they  would  enforce  that  law  to  the  end. 

I  answered:  "The  Lord  being  my  helper,  gentlemen,  I 
shall  oltniipt  to  preach  next  Sabbalh  in  that  church  (pointing 
toward  the  church-house  in  Canton)."  It  should  he  stated  that 
I  afterward  stood  by  the  dying  bed  of  one  of  these  men,  \\lio 
asked  me  to  pray  for  him.  I  tried  as  best  I  could  to  do  so.  A 
short  time  before  his  death  he  expressed  a  degree  of  readiness, 
and  said  he  had  some  comfort  as  he  passed  through  the  chilly 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  197 

waters  of  death.  Holding  me  by  the  hand,  and  looking  me  in 
the  face,  he  said:  "  To  be  consistent,  I  have  gone  too  far." 

All  the  preachers  in  the  county  (not  Radical)  had  quit  preach- 
ing. I  stood  alone,  but  enjoyed  great  peace  of  mind.  Indica- 
tions of  the  divine  presence  were  witnessed  in  almost  every  con- 
gregation. I  fully  believe  the  Lord  sanctioned  my  course. 

A  few  Sabbaths  came  and  went,  and  still  I  was  at  liberty. 
Many  threats  were  made  to  mob  me  as  a  lawless  man.  I  told 
them  that  I  did  not  regard  myself  lawless,  while  I  stood  ready 
to  suffer  the  penalty.  Finding  that  I  was  not  to  be  moved  by 
threats,  they  determined  upon  my  arrest.  It  was  Mondav  morn- 
ing. I  had  tried  to  preach  twice  in  Monticello  on  the  previous 
day.  1  felt  very  much  composed.  Entering  the  workshop  of  a 
friend,  the  deputy  sheriff  came  in  after  me.  Me  read  the  sum- 
mons. Placing  myself  under  his  protection,  I  was  marched 
across  the  street  to  the  court-room  of  Justice  Newland,  and  was 
introduced  to  the  court.  The  deputy  who  arrested  me  was  one 
William  Cisler,  a  brother  of  the  sheriff.  The  court-room  was 
crowded,  as  it  was  the  first  time  that  a  man  had  been  arrested  in 
that  county  for  preaching  the  gospel,  and  there  was  considera- 
ble excitement  in  the  village. 

When  asked  if  I  was  ready  for  trial  I  replied  that  I  was  not, 
and  asked  for  a  change  of  venue.  The  justice  asked  why  I 
wanted  a  change  of  venue.  I  replied  that  it  was  upon  the 
ground  that  he  (Justice  Newland)  was  an  ex-rebel  and  a  ferjured 
JIHIH,  and  that  I  could  not  hope  to  get  justice  in  such  a  court.  At 
this  he  became  exceedingly  angry,  but  when  I  informed  him 
that  some  of  the  best  citizens  of  the  county  were  ready  to  make 
good  the  charge  he  cooled  down  and  consulted  a  lawyer  as  to 
whether  I  had  a  right  to  take  a  change  of  venue. 

The  court  entered  into  a  preliminarv  examination;  called 
one  witness;  consulted  one  Mr.  Rollins,  who  claimed  to  be  a 
lawyer;  went  through  the  farce  of  an  investigation,  and  bound 
me  over  in  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars  for  my  appearance 
at  the  next  term  of  the  Circuit  Court,  upon  which  I  was  dis- 
missed. 

Here  the  question  arose:  Had  I  bound  myself  not  to  preach? 
No;  I  would  have  gone  to  jail  before  giving  such  a  bond.  So 
the  following  Sabbath  I  tried  as  best  I  could  to  preach  Jesus  and 
the  resurrection,  morning  and  evening.  I  was  soon  arrested 


198  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

again,  held  in  custody  a  portion  of  the  day,  and  acquitted  for 
want  of  testimony.  The  man  who  complained  and  had  me  ar- 
rested would  not  appear  as  a  witness  in  the  case.  So  ashamed 
was  he  of  the  w  hole  thing  that  he  could  not  be  found.  A  few 
weeks  elapsed,  when  I  was  engaged  in  a  very  gracious  revival 
of  religion  in  the  city  of  Canton.  The  sheriff  (Cisler)  came 
down  to  arrest  me  again.  He  said:  "Sir,  I  have  come  to  arrest 
you  again,  as  you  will  not  take  the  oath  of  loyalty."  I  was  in  a 
happy  frame  of  mind,  and,  laying  my  hand  on  his  shoulder, 
said:  "Sir,  I  am  ready  to  go  with  you  to  Monticello,  the  stake, 
or  to  prison ;  for  the  good  Lord  has  done  great  things  for  me  re- 
cently, and  I  am  prepared  for  the  worst;  but  I  cannot  take  that 
oath.  I  cannot  dare  to  have  my  commission  renewed  by  a 
civil  officer."  He  hesitated  a  few  moments,  and  said:  "I  forgot 
some  of  my  papers,  and  will  not  take  you  to-day." 

This  was  noised  abroad  in  the  town  of  Canton,  and  some  ex- 
pressed their  indignation  toward  the  officer  that  would  not  per- 
form his  duty ;  whereupon  the  city  authorities  took  it  in  hand, 
and  the  following  morning  Brother  James  Penn  and  myself 
were  arrested  by  Constable  Wilson,  and  brought  before  Justice 
Page,  who  bound  each  of  us  in  a  bond  of  $500  to  appear  at 
the  ensuing  term  of  the  Circuit  Court. 

We  returned  to  the  church  and  resumed  the  meeting,  almost 
under  the  shadow  of  the  justice's  office.  The  good  work  went 
on,  and  scores  of  souls  were  converted  at  that  meeting.  It  was 
the  most  successful  year  of  my  ministry.  By  this  time  I  began 
to  be  regarded  by  that  class  as  a  lawless  man,  a  pestilent  fellow, 
and  should  not  be  allowed  to  remain  in  that  part  of  the  countrv. 
Two  or  three  unsuccessful  attempts  had  been  made  to  mob  me 
out  of  the  country.  Providence  so  ordered  it  that  there  never 
was  a  violent  hand  laid  on  me.  Those  persons  who  seemed  to 
be  full  of  the  spirit  of  mobocracy  were  encouraged  by  those  who 
were  in  honorable  positions.  It  is  true  that  there  were  some 
honorable  exceptions  to  this  rule  who  were,  though  Radicals, 
opposed  to  such  conduct.  At  the  ensuing  term  of  the  Circuit 
Court  a  bill  was  found  against  me,  the  result  of  which  has  been 
made  known  by  some  of  my  legal  friends. 

We  call  the  attention  of  the  reader  to  the  follow- 
ing article  taken  from  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Ad- 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  199 

vacate  of  February  i,  1866,  because  it  gives  a  con- 
cise and  general  view  of  things  as  they  were 
transpiring  in  different  parts  of  the  State: 

Persecutions  still  rage  against  our  preachers  in  parts  of  Mis- 
souri, and  it  is  hoped  and  believed  that  they  justly  claim  the 
promise :  "  Blessed  are  they  which  are  persecuted  for  right- 
eousness' sake."  A  Sabbath  or  two  ago  one  of  our  most  faith- 
ful and  exemplary  men  was  arrested  while  in  the  pulpit;  the 
solemn  services  of  the  holy  day  in  the  house  of  God  were  ab- 
ruptly broken  up;  the  preacher  was  hastened  off  to  trial,  and 
there  required  to  give  bond,  with  security,  in  the  sum  of  $1,50x3 
for  his  appearance  at  court. 

This  thing  of  serving  civil  processes  on  the  Sabbath  is  rather 
new,  but  nothing  of  that  kind  should  be  thought  strange  in  this 
country  at  the  present.  When  hearing  of  such  things  how  forc- 
ibly comes  to  the  mind  the  words  of  the  holy  Psalmist:  "Why 
do  the  heathen  rage,  and  the  people  imagine  a  vain  thing?  The 
kings  of  the  earth  set  themselves,  and  the  rulers  take  counsel 
together,  against  the  Lord,  and  against  his  Anointed,  saying,  Let 
us  break  their  bands  asunder,  and  cast  away  their  cords  from  us. 
He  that  sitteth  in  the  heavens  shall  laugh:  the  Lord  shall  have 
them  in  derision." 

There,  brethren — all  of  you— read  that;  ponder  it  well,  and 
then  uncomplainingly,  unmurmuringly,  patiently,  and  joyfully 
trust  in  God.  If  God  will  that  any  or  all  of  us  should  go  to 
prison  or  to  death,  it  will  be  best  for  us;  and  in  our  hearts,  as  well 
as  with  our  lips,  we  should  say:  "Thy  will  be  done."  Let  "the 
fearful  and  the  unbelieving,"  the  time-serving,  the  truckling  do 
as  they  may,  be  sure  that  you  give  not  to  another  the  honor  that 
belongs  to  God  alone. 

Perhaps  there  be  those  in  other  States  who  wonder  why  the 
preachers  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  are  so  violently  perse- 
cuted in  this  State,  and  ask :  "  What  have  they  done  ?  "  Well,  for 
the  information  of  such  be  it  known:  these  men  are  not  thieves, 
to  steal  Church  property  or  any  other  property ;  they  are  not 
robbers;  they  are  not  seditious  persons;  they  are  not  stirrers  up 
of  strife;  they  are  not  even  "busybodies  in  other  men's  mat- 
ters;" but  they  are  quiet,  orderly,  inoffensive  men  whose  only 
crime  (?)  is  that  they  will  persist  in  preaching  the  gospel 


2OO  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

and  exercising  the  regular  functions  of  their  ministry,  with- 
out first  subscribing  to  and  filing  an  oath  which  transfers  to 
Caesar  the  things  which  belong  to  God;  or,  in  other  words,  an 
oath  which  transfers  the  supreme  authority  and  headship  of  the 
Church  f^om  Christ,  the  ever-blessed  Saviour,  to  the  State  of 
Missouri,  or  rather  to  a  faction  in  the  State  of  Missouri.  That 
is  all,  and  the  ministers  can  well  afford  to  suffer  in  such  a 
cause. 

Rev.  J.  A.  Mumpower  wrote  to  the  St.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate  of  July  25,  1866,  in  the  fol- 
lowing language : 

I  was  solicited  by  the  presiding  elder  of  the  Chillicothe  Dis- 
trict to  take  charge  of  the  Albany  Circuit,  which  I  did.  I  ar- 
rived on  my  field  of  labor  on  the  6th  day  of  April  last.  Found 
the  brethren  glad  to  see  me,  as  the  sight  of  a  Southern  Meth- 
odist preacher  was  a  desirable  one;  for  the  war  and  its  fiery 
persecutions  had  driven  them  from  the  field  of  work,  and  the 
membership  had  been  peeled  and  scattered. 

I  went  to  work  with  all  my  power  in  my  Master's  cause  to 
reorganize  and  get  the  work  in  order  as  soon  as  possible.  I 
soon  found,  as  it  should  be,  that  a  pure  and  unadulterated  gos- 
pel was  what  the  masses  of  the  people  desired,  and  as  our  con- 
gregations were  so  very  large  that  it  soon  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  the  opposers  of  our  beloved  Zion  and  of  religion,  and 
as  it  was  too  popular,  the  officials  concluded  that  they  would 
put  a  stop  to  my  preaching  Jesus  and  him  crucified.  Accord- 
ingly, and  on  the  i3th  of  May,  after  evening  service  in  Albany 
(which  was  one  of  the  old-fashioned  meetings  in  which  God 
was  pleased  to  water  the  vine  with  his  love,  and  the  shouts  of 
his  children  went  up  as  an  incense  of  praise),  the  sheriff  came 
to  me  and  wanted  to  know  if  I  was  preaching  without  taking 
the  "oath."  I  told  him  that  I  was.  He  then  asked  me  if  I  in- 
tended to  take  it;  to  which  I  replied  that  I  did  not,  as  a  con- 
dition upon  which  I  should  preach.  He  then  informed  me  that 
they  would  arrest  me,  which  was  accordingly  done  on  the  I5th 
inst.  I  was  bound  in  a  bond  of  one  thousand  dollars  for  my  ap- 
pearance before  the  Circuit  Court,  which  bond  was  filled  by  my 
friends  out  of  the  Church. 

I  have  been  trying  to  preach  ever  since,  though  often  threat- 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  201 

ened,  and  at  one  place  (Stark's  School-house)  was  not  allowed 
to  preach  on  account  of  mob  violence. 

Never  in  my  life  have  I  seen  such  interest  manifested  for 
the  -word  of  life.  The  congregations  are  so  large  that  the 
houses  are  not  sufficiently  large  to  contain  them. 

It  has  been  my  happy  privilege  to  enroll  over  sixty  names 
on  the  Church  book  since  my  arrival  on  this  work.  I  have  just 
closed  a  meeting  that  commenced  on  the  ist  inst.,  and  lasted 
eight  days,  at  Colvin's  School-house.  The  result  was  twelve 
conversions  and  thirteen  accessions  to  the  Church,  and  still  the 
interest  is  deepening  and  widening. 

The  Church  is  all  alive. to  her  interest,  and  we  are  trying  to 
breast  the  storm  as  good  soldiers  for  Jesus,  knowing  that  he  is 
our  friend,  and  are  looking  forward  to  the  time  and  place  where 
the  "  wicked  cease  from  troubling,  and  the  weary  are  at  rest." 
The  old  ship  is  safe  with  King  Jesus  as  her  captain;  she  will 
proudly  mount  the  waves  of  sorrow,  and  breast  adverse  winds, 
and  safely  anchor  in  the  haven  of  eternal  rest.  And  erelong  I 
expect  to  see  a  great  harvest  gathered  on  this  circuit.  Though 
persecution  rages,  all  must  work  for  good.  We  are  being  tried 
as  gold  in  the  fire.  May  the  dross  be  consumed!  O  for  more  of 
that  grace  that  will  enable  us  to  bear  the  reproach  of  the  world 
for  our  Master  and  count  it  all  joy! 

From  the  pen  of  Rev.  J.  D.  Vincil  in  the  St. 
Low's  Christian  Advocate  of  January  18,  1866: 

While  in  Hannibal  spending  the  holidays  with  my  family  I 
preached  two  sermons  to  my  former  congregation  and  friends. 
During  the  week  a  complaint  was  filed  before  a  magistrate  and 
a  writ  issued  for  my  arrest,  which  was  served.  On  appearing 
before  his  honor,  the  "  'Squire,"  I  was  recognized  in  a  bond  of 
five  hundred  dollars  to  answer  an  indictment  in  the  Circuit 
Court  of  Marion  County,  on  the  fourth  Monday  in  February. 
The  grand  jury,  at  the  regular  term  of  the  Circuit  Court  for 
this  county,  failed  to  find  indictments  against  n on-jti ring  clergy- 
men. But  the  interests  of  zealots  and  heated  partisans  required 
our  punishment.  So  a  special  grand  jury  was  empaneled  for 
the  ostensible  purpose  of  indicting  a  robber,  but  with  the  real, 
as  is  supposed,  purpose  of  attending  to  the  offending  clergy- 
man. Consequently  an  indictment  was  found  against  me. 


2O2  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

The  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of  March  29, 
1866,  comes  to  us  in  the  voice  of  wise  counsel,  of 
justice,  of  sobriety,  and  of  right  doing: 

Our  Church  in  the  bounds  of  the  Missouri  Conference  is 
doing  well,  taking  a  deeper  and  yet  deeper  hold  upon  the  af- 
fections of  the  people,  and  gaining  rapidly  in  numbers  and  in 
moral  influence.  The  persecutions  of  the  preachers  in  that  and 
in  the  bounds  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  will  amount  to  but 
little  so  long  as  those  preachers  conduct  themselves  aright. 
The  Advocate  still  advises  them  to  forbearance  and  to  the  culti- 
vation of  the  spirit  of  forgiveness;  still  resorting  to  and  faith- 
fully using  all  just  and  proper  means  to  maintain  and  defend 
their  rights.  But  be  sure  they  offend  not  against  God,  either 
by  doing  wrong  or  neglecting  duty.  As  far  as  possible  they 
must  continue  to  occupy  the  field  they  have  so  long  cultivated, 
and  in  no  case  forsake  the  people  who  have  so  long  looked  to 
them  for  instruction  in  holy  things.  This  were  to  prove  un- 
faithful to  the  trusts  committed  to  their  keeping.  But  while 
thev  stand  their  ground  and  earnestlv  maintain  by  all  proper 
means  their  rights  and  privileges,  let  them  see  to  it  that  none 
"render  evil  for  evil  unto  any,"  or  return  "railing  for  railing." 
Contrariwise,  let  them,  agreeably  to  the  direction  of  the  Div  ine 
Master,  bless  them  by  whom  they  are  persecuted,  and  pray  for 
them  by  whom  they  are  despitefully  used.  Then  they  may 
confidently  expect  the  presence  and  help  of  Him  who  said:  "  I 
will  never  leave  nor  forsake  you."  And  if  he  be  with  or  for 
them,  who  are  they  that  can  harm  them? 

At  the  present  time  there  are  difficulties  of  the  most  serious 
kind  in  the  way  of  our  Church  and  most  formidable  obstacles 
before  it,  which  can  only  be  removed  and  overcome  by  the 
help  of  him  who  is  Almighty;  hence  a  humble  .and  consistent 
trust  in  his  promises,  holy  living,  fervent  prayer,  and  a  faithful 
performance  of  all  our  duties,  are  the  safe  road  to  follow ;  and 
just  in  so  far  as  we  travel  this  road,  just  so  far  will  we  find  in 
the  end  that  "  all  things  work  together  for  good  to  them  that 
love  the  Lord."  O  how  earnestly  would  this  paper  exhort  the 
brethren  in  every  place  to  "be  sober  and  vigilant,"  for  truly 
their  "  adversary,  as  a  roaring  lion,  goeth  about  seeking  whom 
he  may  devour;"  he  lurks  at  every  corner,  besets  every  public 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  203 

and  private  way,  assumes  every  possible  garb,  urges  every  pos- 
sible pretext,  resorts  to  every  expedient,  tries  every  art,  to  se- 
duce and  lead  us  from  the  path  of  righteousness;  and  if  he  do 
not  succeed,  it  will  not  be  for  lack  of  energy  or  perseverance. 
As  a  people,  therefore,  our  trust  must  be  in  the  "  Lord,  our 
righteousness,"  and  who  faithfully  and  humbly  trust  him  will 
never  be  put  to  confusion. 

Then  let  us  carefully  guard  against  all  delusive  and  decep- 
tive influences,  all  mere  outside  show,  and  seek  with  all  ear- 
nestness to  maintain  the  pure  spirituality  of  the  gospel  of  Christ; 
seek  to  possess  and  manifest  the  meek  and  quiet  spirit  of  him 
whose  disciples  and  servants  we  profess  to  be,  that  all  may  see 
in  us  the  constant  exhibition  of  a  deep,  earnest  desire  to  live  for 
God  and  for  his  cause — to  serve  him  that  we  may  reign  with 
him  hereafter  and  forever. 

PASTORAL,  ADDRESS. 

We  direct  the  attention  of  the  reader  to  the  fol- 
lowing Pastoral  Address  of  the  Missouri  Confer- 
ence: 

Dear  Brethren  and  Sisters  in  the  Lord :  First  of  all  we  pray 
that  "grace,  mercy,  and  peace  from  God  our  Father,  and  from 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  communion  and  fellowship  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  may  be  with  you  all."  And  may  "the  peace  of 
God,  which  passeth  all  understanding,  keep  your  hearts  and 
minds  through  Christ  Jesus."  We,  your  ministers  and  serv- 
ants for  Jesus'  sake,  about  seventy  in  number,  have  just  closed 
the  business  of  another  most  peaceful,  harmonious,  and  profit- 
able Annual  Conference  session,  and  expect  to  go  to  our  re- 
spective fields  of  labor  to  join  you  in  Christian  trials  and  tri- 
umphs, and  to  encourage  you  in  the  struggle  you  are  making 
to  gain  a  home  in  heaven.  And  it  is  with  much  gratitude  to 
God  we  record  the  fact  that  from  all  parts  of  our  beloved  Zion 
the  cheering  intelligence  comes  to  us  of  a  united  and  deter- 
mined membership  in  the  maintenance  of  our  ecclesiastical 
organization  as  the  means  of  promoting  the  Redeemer's  king- 
dom upon  earth  and  of  saving  the  souls  of  men.  It  is  scarcely 
necessary  to  remind  you  of  the  temporal  afflictions  and  spiritual 
conflicts  of  the  past  year,  except  for  the  pui-pose  of  exciting  re- 


204  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

newed  gratitude  to  God  for  his  sustaining  grace.  In  view  of 
the  past  and  present,  how  pertinent  is  the  language  of  the 
Psalmist  to  your  case  as  it  recounts  the  trials  and  dangers,  pro- 
claims the  deliverance,  and  records  the  grateful  acknowledg- 
ments of  the  people  of  God.  "The  Lord  is  my  light  and  my 
salvation;  whom  shall  I  fear?  the  Lord  is  the  strength  of  mv 
life;  of  whom  shall  I  be  afraid?  when  the  wicked,  even  my 
enemies  and  my  foes,  came  upon  me  to  eat  up  my  flesh,  they 
stumbled  and  fell.  Though  a  host  should  encamp  against  me, 
my  heart  shall  not  fear:  though  war  should  rise  against  me,  in 
this  will  I  be  confident."  For  "  God  Ks  our  refuge  and  strength, 
a  very  present  help  in  trouble."  And  while  we  would  thus  "  call 
to  remembrance  the  former  davs,  in  which,  after  ye  were  il- 
luminated, ye  endured  a  great  fight  of  afflictions;  partly,  whilst 
ye  were  made  a  gazing-stock  both  by  reproaches  and  afflic- 
tions; and  parti v,  whilst  ye  became  companions  of  them  that 
were  so  used.  For  ye  had  compassion  of  us  in  our  bonds,  and 
taking  joyfully  the  spoiling  of  your  goods,  knowing  in  your- 
selves that  ye  have  in  heaven  a  better  and  an  enduring  sub- 
stance"— we  would  also  remind  you  that  you  "have  need  of 
patience,  that,  after  ye  have  done  the  will  of  God,  ye  might  re- 
ceive the  promise."  "  Let  us  hold  fast  the  profession  of  our 
faith  without  wavering;  for  he  is  faithful  that  promised;  and 
let  us  consider  one  another  to  provoke  unto  love  and  to  good 
works:  not  forsaking  the  assembling  of  ourselves  together,  as 
the  manner  of  some  is;  but  exhorting  one  another:  and  so 
much  the  more,  as  ye  see  the  day  approaching."  The  great 
danger  is  that  under  vour  repeated  provocations,  persecutions, 
and  trials  you  should  lose  your  patience,  your  faith  in  God,  vour 
Christian  consolation,  and  yielding  to  temptation  and  discour- 
agement should  thus  be  led  into  sin.  "From  whence  come 
wars  and  fightings  among  you?  come  they  not  hence,  even  of 
your  lusts  that  war  in  your  members?"  Then  "let  brotherly 
love  continue,"  for  "love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the  law,"  and  "the 
end  of  the  commandment  is  charity  out  of  a  pure  heart,  and  of 
faith  unfeigned."  Let  us  remember  that  although  we  may  give 
all  our  goods  to  feed  the  poor  and  our  bodies  to  be  burned,  if 
we  have  not  charity  it  will  profit  us  nothing.  Love  is  the  soul 
and  good  works  the  body  of  our  blessed  Christianitv.  "Be  not 
overcome  of  evil,  but  overcome  evil  with  good."  Therefore, 


1865-66.  Missouri  Conference.  205 

"  love  your  enemies,  bless  them  that  curse  you,  do  good  to  them 
that  hate  you,  and  pray  for  them  which  despitefully  use  you 
and  persecute  you."  Dear  brethren,  if  we  will  but  do  this,  "the 
gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  us;"  for  although  the 
storms  of  persecution  in  their  utmost  fury  may  rage  around  us, 
we  shall  be  upheld  and  defended  by  the  Rock  of  Ages.  As 
there  is  a  strong  probability  of  your  being  deprived  of  the 
preaching  of  the  gospel  for  some  time  to  come,  we  would  ex- 
hort you  to  the  increased  and  prayerful  study  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  to  regular,  earnest,  secret  devotion,  to  daily  atten- 
tion to  the  family  altar,  and  to  prompt  and  faithful  attendance 
at  the  weekly  prayer  and  class  meetings.  And  if  you  do  this 
the  flame  of  piety  will  be  kept  alive  in  your  souls  and  our  or- 
ganization will  remain  intact  till  a  brighter  day  shall  dawn  upon 
us.  And  rest  assured  that  we,  your  ministers,  will  not  forsake 
you  in  the  hour  of  adversity ;  and  we  hope  to  rejoice  with  vou 
in  that  prosperity  which  is  sure  to  come  if  we  are  faithful  to 
ourselves  and  to  our  Divine  Master.  "  Now  the  God  of  peace, 
that  brought  again  from  the  dead  our  Lord  Jesus,  that  great 
Shepherd  of  the  sheep,  through  the  blood  of  the  everlastmg  cov- 
enant, make  you  perfect  in  every  good  work  to  do  his  will,  work- 
ing in  you  that  which  is  well-pleasing  in  his  sight,  through 
Jesus  Christ;  to  whom  be  glory  forever  and  ever.  Amen." 

The  following  is  a  statement  of  an  effort  made 
to  get  possession  of  our  church  at  Lexington : 

The  suit  at  Lexington,  as  you  are  probably  aware,  was  insti- 
tuted by  certain  persons  assuming  to  be  the  trustees  of  the  M. 
E.  Church  against  the  trustees  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South. 
It  was  an  action  of  ejectment  for  the  recovery  of  the  posses- 
sion, on  the  ground  of  title.  The  answer  set  up  the  action 
of  the  General  Conference  in  New  York  in  1844,  embracing 
the  whole  Plan  of  Separation,  as  also  the  action  of  the  South- 
ern Conference  in  convention  at  Louisville  in  1845,  as  well 
as  the  action  of  the  Missouri  and  St.  Louis  Conferences  in  ref- 
erence to  the  Plan  of  Separation ;  all  of  which  action,  it  was  in- 
sisted, was  to  effect  a  contract  between  the  parties,  and  valid 
and  binding  as  such.  I  found  that  the  suit  had  been  dismissed, 
and  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  left  in  the  undisputed  possession 
of  their  property. 


CHAPTER  IX. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

Wise  and  Judicious  Advice  of  the  S/.  Lotiis  Christian  Advocate 
— No  Printed  Minutes  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference — 
Statistical  Information  from  Other  Reliable  Sources — The 
Preachers  Received  Their  Appointments  Uncomplainingly 
and  Went  Forth  to  Their  Fields  of  Labor  Joyfully— The 
Conference  Proceedings  Were  Such  as  Properly  Pertain  to  a 
Purely  Christian  Organization— The  Voice  of  the  St.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate  in  Relation  to  the  Respective  Prerogatives 
and  Duties  of  Church  and  State — Statement  of  Rev.  J.  S. 
Frazier — Trials  of  Rev.  J.  C.  Williams  and  Rev.  H.  M. 
Long — Document  of  Rev.  W.  S.  Woodard — Seizure  of  Our 
Church  in  Boonville — Notorious  Murder  of  Rev.  Samuel  S. 
Headlee — Pastoral  Address  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Confer- 
ence of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South. 

THE  reader  will  no  doubt  be  very  much  inter- 
ested in  the  following  appropriate,  wise,  and 
judicious  remarks  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Ad- 
vocate, whose  voice  has  always  been  on  the  side  of 
peace  and  harmony,  truth  and  righteousness: 

The  preachers  and  members  are  more  closely  and  more 
firmly  attached  to  the  Church  than  ever  before.  The  dav*  of 
persecution  and  trial,  however,  have  not  ended.  Those  who 
have  sought  its  destruction  are  still  active  in  their  efforts  to  ac- 
complish their  unchristian  work,  and  the  more  bitter,  perhaps, 
because  of  their  past  failures.  It  is  painful  to  witness  the  bad 
feeling  and  bad  conduct  that  characterize  their  course.  Disap- 
pointment, mortification,  and  chagrin  have  increased  their  bit- 
terness. They  are  to  be  pitied,  both  for  their  present  condi- 
tion and  future  prospects.  Tney  will  most  likely  continue  to 
rage,  but  let  none  of  us  return  evil  for  evil.  Better  suffer 
(206) 


1865-66.  St.  Louis  Conference.  207 

wrong  then  do  wrong.  "  Think  it  not  strange  concerning 
the  fiery  trial  which  is  to  try  you,  as  though  some  strange 
thing  happened  unto  you:  but  rejoice,  inasmuch  as  ye  are 
partakers  of  Christ's  sufferings;  that,  when  his  glory  shall  be 
revealed,  ye  may  be  glad  also  with  exceeding  joy.  If  ye  be  re- 
proached for  the  name  of  Christ,  happy  are  ye."  Thus  spoke 
the  apostle ;  and  the  words  are  particularly  applicable  to  the 
ministers  and  members  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  at  the 
present.  The  persecution  will  be  carried  on  for  some  time  yet. 
to  come,  but  will  do  no  real  harm  in  the  end  except  to  the  per- 
secutors. Upon  them,  sooner  or  later,  it  will  recoil  with  terri- 
ble force.  Meanwhile,  let  our  preachers  and  people  pursue  the 
"even  tenor  of  their  way,"  giving  themselves  to  works  of  faith 
and  labors  of  love,  rejoicing  in  tribulation,  "knowing  that  trib- 
ulation worketh  patience;  and  patience,  experience;  and  ex- 
perience, hope;  and  hope  maketh  not  ashamed;  because  the 
love  of  God  is  shed  abroad  in  our  hearts  by  the  Holy  Ghost 
which  is  given  unto  us."  And  let  all  take  heed  to  "  the  sure 
word  of  prophecy,  until  the  day-dawn,  and  the  dav-star  arise  in 
their  hearts."  Lift  up  the  hands  which  hang  down.  Mark 
straight  paths  for  their  feet,  for  the  "  Lord  is  at  hand." 

The  attachment  of  our  people  to  the  Church  of  their  choice 
is  worthy  of  all  commendation.  Rarely,  or  never,  was  there 
more  unity  of  feeling  or  internal  peace  in  the  Church  than  at 
present.  As  soon  .as  the  preachers  reach  their  work,  they  are 
hailed  by  the  people  as  the  messengers  of  truth,  and  welcomed 
as  the  servants  of  the  Most  High.  The  scattered  flocks  are  be- 
ing gathered  again — coming  together  in  the  fullness  of  Chris- 
tian sympathy — and  their  devotions  are  characterized  by  fervent 
Zealand  holy  joy;  while  hundreds  are  being  converted  and  add- 
ed to  their  numbers.  And  there  is  every  indication  that  this 
work  will  go  on  increasingly  until  thousands  and  tens  of  thou- 
sands, now  afar  off,  will  be  brought  nigh  to  God  by  the  power 
of  that  blood  which  speaketh  better  things  than  the  blood  of 
Abel.  Truth  is  mighty  and  will  prevail.  Though  crushed  to 
earth  for  a  time,  it  will  rise  again.  This  has  been  the  stay  and 
comfort  of  our  people  from  the  first.  Now  they  begin  to  real- 
ize that  truth  is  rising — light  begins  to  beam.  The  waste  places 
are  to  be  rebuilt;  and  the  Church  will  come  forth  from  her 
wilderness  state,  or  from  her  depression,  brighter,  better,  and 


208  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

more  powerful  than  ever.  Let  all  humbly  rejoice  in  God  for 
his  great  salvation!  With  the  Psalmist,  we  may  truly  say:  "If 
it  had  not  been  the  Lord  who  was  on  our  side,  when  men  rose 
up  against  us:  then  they  had  swallowed  us  up  quick,  when  their 
wrath  was  kindled  against  us.  .  .  Blessed  be  the  Lord,  who 
hath  not  given  us  as  a  prey  to  their  teeth ! " 

God  has  been  our  Preserver,  and  to  him  alone  the  praise  be- 
longs. While,  for  wise  and  merciful  ends,  he  permitted  our 
preachers  and  people  to  be  scattered;  many  of  our  houses  of 
worship  to  be  burned  or  pulled  down,  or  prostituted  to  unworthy 
purposes,  and  others  of  them  to  be  seized  and  temporarily  occu- 
pied by  those  who  were  foremost  in  our  persecution,  we  now 
realize  that,  like  the  Christians  of  old,  though  "  cast  down"  we 
were  "not  destroyed."  "God  is  his  own  interpreter;"  and  after 
awhile  "we  shall  see  as  we  are  seen,  and  know  as  we  are 
known;"  when  this  is  the  case: 

This  note  above  the  rest  shall  swell, 
Our  Jesus  has  done  all  things  well. 

Then  "  let  us  not  cast  away  our  confidence,  which  has  great 
recompense  of  reward."  Be  patient,  be  steadfast,  be  humble, 
watchful,  prayerful,  cultivating  that  charity  which  "  beareth  all 
things,  believeth  all  things,  hopeth  all  things,  endureth  all 
things,  and  never  faileth."  Above  all,  seek  the  spirit  of  forbear- 
ance and  of  forgiveness,  that  "  God  in  all  things  may  be  glori- 
fied through  Jesus  Christ,  to  whom  be  praise  and  dominion  for- 
ever and  ever.  Amen."* 

We  find  no  printed  minutes  of  the  session  of  the 
St.  Louis  Annual  Conference  for  this  year,  1865-66. 
There  is,  however,  a  report  in  the  St.  Louis  Chris- 
tian Advocate  of  said  session,  from  which  we  get 
our  statistical  information.  Though  not  an  official 
document  like  the  other,  it  is,  no  doubt,  correct 
and  reliable.  Though  there  is  monotony  in  statis- 
tics of  any  kind,  yet  their  importance  cannot  be 
overestimated.  They  furnish  the  facts  and  figures 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate,  September  21,  1865. 


1865-66.  «5V.  Louis  Conference.  209 

and  tell  us  what  we  are  and  what  we  are  doing. 
They  are  the  solid  part  and  starting-point  of  our 
history.  In  matters  of  great  importance  repetition 
of  language  is  admissible  and  right,  to  prevent 
^mistakes,  as  in  law,  for  instance;  and  also  to  a 
'greater  or  less  degree  in  most  statistical  reports, 
giving  bare  facts  and  dry  figures  in  which  there  is 
no  place  for  the  embellishments  of  rhetoric. 

Bishop  Kavanaugh  opened  the  eighteenth  session 
of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference  in  the  city  of 
St.  Louis  on  the  23d  day  of  August,  1865.  The 
religious  services  were  conducted  by  the  presiding 
bishop. 

W.  M.  Prottsman  was  elected  Secretary;  J.  W. 
Lewis,  Assistant  Secretary;  and  S.  W.  Horn,  Re- 
cording Secretary. 

Lewis  W.  Powell  and  John  Grills  were  admitted 
on  trial.  William  Alexander  and  J.  E.  Berryman 
were  re-admitted.  Received  into  full  connection: 
L.  B.  Ellis  and  G.  P.  Smith.  They  were  also 
elected  and  ordained  deacons.  The  following  local 
preachers  were  elected  and  ordained  deacons: 
William  Lusk,  Clark  Brown,  J.  F.  Hogan,  and 
John  Grills.  The  traveling  preachers  elected  and 
ordained  elders  were:  J.  A.  Murphy,  J.  E.  God- 
bey,  and  John  C.  Williams.  Supernumerary  re- 
lations were  granted  to  John  Whittaker  and  E.  M. 
Marvin.  The  following  preachers  were  superan- 
nuated: W.  B.  Quinn,  J.  F.  Truslow,  A.  Rucker, 
J.  T.  Peery,  J.  T.  Davenport,  W.  R.  Babcock,  E. 
W.  Chanceaulme,  S.  S.  Colburn,  J.  N.  W. 
14 


2io  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

Springer,  Christian  Ecker,  John  Thomas,  John 
McEwin,  John  Monroe,  James  McGhee,  Alfred 
Nichols,  John  W.  Bond,  and  W.  H.  Mobley. 

•Having  enjoyed  a  pleasant  and  profitable  session, 
and  having  transacted  the  business  of  the  Confer- 
ence, the  preachers,  forty-seven  in  number,  re- 
ceived their  appointments  and  separated  with  min- 
gled feelings  of  sorrow  and  joy — of  sorrow  at  the 
thought  that  they  in  all  probability  would  never  all 
meet  again  in  another  Annual  Conference,  that  one 
or  more  might  not  be  present  at  the  next  roll-call. 
This  thought  saddened  their  hearts  and  cast  a 
gloom  over  their  feelings,  for  they  love  one  an- 
other as  few  men  love.  They  are  united  by  the 
strong  tie  of  Christian  love,  and  for  these  years 
past  they  have  been  associated  in  the  work  of  the 
Christian  ministry  and  in  cultivating  the  Lord's 
vineyard.  Therefore  an  annual  convocation  is 
anticipated  by  them  with  great  pleasure.  It  is  one 
of  the  joyous  occasions — an  oasis  in  the  desert  of 
life.  During  the  session  of  the  Conference  the 
language  of  their  hearts  is:  "Behold,  how  good 
and  pleasant  it  is  for  brethren  to  dwell  together 
in  unity."  Like  Peter  on  the  mount  of  Trans- 
figuration, they  feel  it  is  good  for  us  to  be  here, 
and  here  let  us  stay.  With  such  an  attachment  it 
is.  easy  to  see  how  parting  at  Conference,  with  the 
probability  of  never  meeting-again,  pains  the  heart. 
But  as  they  go  forth  to  their  respective  fields  of 
labor  joy  takes  the  place  of  sorrow,  because  the 
work  of  preaching  the  gospel  and  calling  sinners 


1865-66.  St'  -Louis  Conference.  211 

to  repentance  is  to  them  sweeter  than  life  and 
stronger  than  death.  The  success  of  the  past  and 
the  encouraging  prospects  of  the  future  inspire  them 
with  indomitable  courage  that  nothing  can  daunt. 

The  attention  of  the  reader  is  respectfully  called 
to  the  reports  of  Conference  proceedings  as  they 
appear  in  this  number  of  the  Advocate.  The  ap- 
pointments of  the  preachers  of  the  Missouri  and 
St.  Louis  Conferences  are  given,  together  with  the 
pastoral  addresses  of  ea,ch  Conference.  The  ad- 
dresses are,  at  the  present,  matters  of  more  than 
ordinary  interest.  By  them  it  will  be  learned  what 
views  the  members  of  these  Conferences  entertained 
in  regard  to  many  of  those  questions  now  most 
prominently  before  the  Church.  Every  true  friend 
of  the  Church  and  of  pure  Christianity  will  rejoice 
to  witness  the  calm,  dignified,  and  truly  Christian 
spirit  manifested  in  these  Conference  proceedings. 
They  remind  one  of  the  earlier  days  in  the  Church 
of  Christ.  In  all  that  was  done  in  the  sessions  of 
these  Conferences  there  was  nothing  that  did  not 
legitimately  and  properly  pertain  to  a  purely  Chris- 
tian organization,  thus  evidencing  what  is  to  be 
hoped  will  always  be  the  case — that  these  Confer- 
ences represent  a  non-secular  Church,  a  body  of 
Christian  ministers. 

The  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of  September 
28,  1865,  talks  wisely  to  the  Church  in  the  follow- 
ing language: 

Let  all  good  and  true  men  combine  together — first  in  opposi- 
tion to  all  wrong ;  especially  in  opposition  to  all  attempts  to  sec- 


212  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1665-66. 

ularize  the  Church  of  Christ,  no  matter  by  whom  or  under  what 
pretexts  those  attempts  may  be  made;  in  opposition  to  all  inter- 
meddling in  State  or  political  affairs  by  ecclesiastical  bodies,  no 
matter  what  the  plea  for  such  intermmeddling  may  be;  in  op- 
position to  all  prostitution  of  the  pulpit,  no  matter  how  great  the 
pressure  may  be  or  how  plausible  the  excuse  for  so  doing.  If 
a  Church  has  not  apostatized  before  it  commences  to  preach  pol- 
itics and  to  intermeddle  as  a  Church  in  State  affairs,  it  will  be 
sure  to  apostatize  soon  after.  Keep  the  pulpits  and  the  deliber- 
ations of  ecclesiastical  bodies  free  from  any  and  every  thing 
other  than  that  which  legitimately  belongs  to  them  as  propa- 
gandists of  the  pure  religion  of  Christ.  Against  all  else  than 
what  is  thus  legitimate  let  good  people  set  their  faces  as  flints. 

In  the  second  place,  let  all  good  men  combine  to  oppose,  by 
all  proper  and  honorable  means,  all  unlawful  interference  on  the 
part  of  the  State  in  matters  purely  spiritual.  The  Church  has 
no  business  with  matters  belonging  to  the  State,  nor  has  the 
State  any  business  with  matters  purely  ecclesiastical.  Let  each 
be  kept  in  its  proper  sphere  and  in  its  own  appropriate  work ; 
let  each  be  respected,  reverenced,  and  obeyed.  A  non-secular 
Church  and  a  non-ecclesiastical  State  should  be  the  motto  of  all. 

In  the  third  place,  all  good  people  should  combine  in  honest, 
persistent  efforts  to  maintain  peace  and  good-will  among  men; 
to  induce  all  to  do  justly,  to  love  mercv,  and  to  walk  humbly 
with  God;  to  fear  God  and  wrork  righteousness;  to  be  gentle, 
merciful,  kind,  forbearing,  and  forgiving;  and  to  live  together  as 
rational  beings,  who  have  undying  souls ;  and  not  as  ferocious 
beasts,  to  bite  and  devour  one  another. 

The  following  is  from  the  pen  of  Rev.  J.  S.  Fra- 
zier: 

I  learn  through  your  columns  of  occasional  arrests  of  minis- 
ters who  refuse  to  take  the  oath  prescribed  by  the  new  Consti- 
tution of  the  State  of  Missouri  as  a  qualification  to  preach  the 
gospel ;  and  thinking  that  perhaps  it  may  be  interesting  to  some 
of  your  readers  to  hear  from  this  part  of  Ca:sar's  dominion,  I 
submit  the  following: 

There  have  been  two  arrests  in  this  county  (Madison)  since 
the  law  took  effect — Father  Tucker  and  myself. 

I  came  from  the  seat  of  our  Annual  Conference  to  this  work 


1865-66.  St.  Louis  Conference.  213 

last  fall,  and  found  by  no  means  a  pleasant  state  of  things. 
Through  the  advice  of  some  of  my  friends  I  desisted  from 
preaching  till  the  ist  of  December;  for  which  I  am -sorry,  very 
sorry,  but  I  hope  God  will  forgive  me.  Since  that  time  I  have 
been  trying  to  dispense  the  truths  of  the  gospel  to  the  people 
of  my  charge,  and  I  trust  that  my  labors  have  not  been  in 
vain. 

I  don't  think  there  ever  has  been  a  time  when  our  Church 
had  a  deeper  hold  on  the  minds  of  the  people  than  now;  and  I 
think  that,  under  God,  Methodism  can  be  built  up  again,  even 
here  where  the  horrors  of  war  have  been  realized  to  such  an 
alarming  extent. 

From  the  time  I  commenced  preaching  up  to  the  nth  inst. 
every  thing  went  on  smoothly,  and  I  indulged  in  the  fond 
hope  that  I  would  not  be  molested;  but  alas!  that  hope  was 
blighted.  A  magistrate  and  constable  came  to  church  on  the 
Sabbath,  and  demanded  by  what  authority  I  was  preaching;  if 
I  "  had  a  certificate."  I  answered  in  the  negative.  They  then 
said:  "You  are  our  prisoner."  My  response  was:  "I  am  at 
your  service.  What  will  you  have  me  do?"  "  Go  to  my  office, 
and  give  bond  for  your  appearance  at  court."  I  was  taken  by 
the  constable  to  the  magistrate's  office,  and  put  in  bond  for  fifteen 
hundred  dollars  for  my  appearance  at  the  next  term  of  the  Circuit 
Court.  I  expect  to  be  there,  if  God  permits.  While  I  was  thus 
arraigned  before  these  men  I  could  not  but  think  of  the  beautiful 
and  appropriate  language  of  the  Psalmist:  "  Why  do  the  heathen 
rage,  and  the  people  imagine  a  vain  thing?  The  kings  of  the 
earth  set  themselves,  and  the  rulers  take  counsel  together, 
against  the  Lord,  and  against  his  Anointed." 

When  the  Founder  of  our  holy  religion  had  done  all  that  was 
necessary  by  his  incarnation  and  death,  and  it  only  remained 
for  him  to  give  directions  to  his  followers,  O  how  unearthly  and 
godlike  was  his  great  command,  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and 
preach  the  gospel  to  everv  creature ! "  He  knew  that  the  truths 
of  his  word  would  be  rejected  and  despised ;  that  they  would  be 
"a  stone  of  stumbling,  a  rock  of  offense;"  yet  his  command  was: 
"  Go ! "  He  knew  that  they  would  be  a  "  sign  that  should  be  spok- 
en against,"  that  the  thoughts  of  many  hearts  might  be  revealed. 
He  knew  that  they  would  be  seen  and  hated.  Still  he  says  to 
them :  "  Go  and  preach."  He  knew  that  they  would  encounter  the 


214  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

scoffer's  unbelief;  that  they  would  be  persecuted  for  righteous- 
ness' sake,  and  some  of  them  be  imprisoned,  and  others  put  to 
death;  yet  his  authority  must  be  obeyed.  For  their  encourage- 
ment he  added  this  promise:  "Lo,  I  am  with  you  alwav,  even 
unto  the  end  of  the  world."  This  promise  is  sufficient;  it  is  full  of 
comfort;  it  is  from  the  lips  of  our  divine  Master;  we  can  claim 
it  as  a  special  promise  to  us  at  the  present  time. 

My  brethren  in  the  ministry,  let  us  obey  our  God.  Let  us 
"preach  the  word;  be  instant  in  season,  out  of  season;  re- 
prove, rebuke,  exhort  with  all  long-suffering  and  doctrine-" 
let  us  endure  afflictions,  do  the  work  of  evangelists,  make  full 
proof  of  our  ministry.  The  time  may  come  when  they  will  take 
us  from  our  churches  and  incarcerate  us  in  prison  for  refusing 
to  render  to  Cresar  the  things  which  belong  to  God ;  but  "  pris- 
ons will  palaces  prove  if  God  be  with  vis."  His  promise  is:  "I 
will  not  leave  you  comfortless;  I  will  come  to  you."  Then  let 
us  be  encouraged ;  let  us  be  "  strong  in  the  grace  that  is  in  Christ 
Jesus,"  and  "  endure  hardness  as  good  soldiers  of  Jesus  Christ ; " 
"  for  I  reckon  that  the  sufferings  of  this  present  time  are  not 
worthy  to  be  compared  to  the  glory  that  shall  be  revealed  in 
us."* 

Rev.  H.  M.  Long. — This  faithful  minister,  also  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  was  indicted,  arrested,  and  put  under  bonds  for 
the  same  offense  against  the  peace  and  dignity  of  the  State. 
He  was  often  in  imminent  danger  of  mob  violence  at  the  hands 
of  those  whom  he  calls  "Loyal  Leaguers,"  who  made  two  de- 
scents upon  the  village  in  which  he  lived,  well  armed  and  with 
hostile  intent.  "  But  soon,"  says  he,  "  and  before  our  trials  came 
off,  the  decision  of  the  court  was  had,  which  released  us  from 
imprisonment.  For  this  we  felt  very  grateful  to  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States,  but  more  especially  to  our  heavenly 
Father."  | 

The  reader  will  find  below  an  interesting  docu- 
ment from  Rev.  W.  S.  Woodard  : 

Since  your  call  for  material  for  your  forth-coming  book,  I 
have  been  thinking  for  some  time  of  something  to  report  to  you 

*J.  S.  Frazier,  in  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of  March  8,  1856. 
4-  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


1865-66.  St.  Louis  Conference.  215 

that  might  be  worthy  of  a  place  therein.  I  have  thought  of 
nothing  more  likely  to  be  of  service  to  you  than  the  following, 
which  I  place  at  your  disposal  : 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  St.  Louis  Conference  met  in 
St.  Louis  the  week  preceding  the  time  when  the  Constitution 
oath  was  to  take  effect.  I  presume  this  time  was  selected  to 
give  the  preachers  an  opportunity  to  consult  with  each  other 
in  reference  to  what  they  would  do  when  the  Strong-Drake 
contrivance  got  between  them  and  their  God;  and  while  he  said 
"  Go  preach,"  it  said,  "  If  you  do,  you  shall  be  punished." 

"  In  the  multitude  of  counsel  there  is  safety,"  saith  the  prov- 
erb. Well,  we  met.  The  roll  was  called,  the  regular  business 
was  taken  up,  the  various  questions  were  called,  and  the  inter- 
ests of  the  Church  were  attended  to  in  the  usual  way.  We 
were  nearly  through  the  business — nearly  ready  to  adjourn — 
and  had  not  yet  reached  the  new  Constitution.  It  did  not  seem 
to  fall  easily  within  the  purview  of  an  Annual  Conference. 
What  ought  to  be  done  ?  We  wanted  to  take  counsel  with  one 
another  in  reference  to  our  action  in  the  future.  But  no  one 
seemed  inclined  to  dirty  his  hands  by  touching  the  "  unclean 
thing."  No  one  wanted  the  journal  of  the  Conference  blurred 
with  a  resolution  that  would  take  cognizance  of  the  fact  that 
the  State  was  making  an  effort  to  prevent  any  one  from  preach- 
ing the  gospel  except  those  whom  she  should  choose  to  license. 

Are  you  going  to  take  the  oath  ?  Will  you  preach  without 
taking  the  oath  ?  These  questions  were  repeatedly  asked  and 
answered  on  the  streets,  but  never  on  the  Conference  floor. 

Being  anxious  to  know  the  sense  of  the  Conference,  I 
wrote  the  above  questions  in  my  memorandum-book,  and  made 
two  columns,  over  which  I  wrote  "Yes"  and  "  No." 

I  still  have  the  book.  Under  the  question  "  Are  you  going  to 
take  the  oath?"  and  in  the  column  headed  "No,"  I  find  the  fol- 
lowing names:  F.  A.  Morris,  G.  W.  Horn,  W.  S.  Woodard, 
Jos.  Bond,  G.  M.  Winton,  T.  W.  Mitchell,  S.  S.  Headlee,  M.M. 
Pugh,  P.  M.  Pinckard,  J.  T.  Peery,  J.  McCary,  J.  C.  Shackle- 
ford,  D.  R.  McAnally,  T.  M.  Finney,  D.  A.  Murphy,  D.  J. 
Marquis,  H.  N.  Watts,  W.  M.  Williams,  S.  C.  Knowles,  John 
Campbell,  L.  W.  Powell,  N.  M.  Talbot,  W.  J.  Brown,  L.  B. 
Ellis,  J.  P.  Barneby,  J.  S.  Frazier  H.  W.  Webster,  G.  P.  Smith, 
and  J.  E.  Godbey. 


2l6  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

Under  the  question  "  Will  you  preach  without  taking  the 
oath?"  and  in  the  column  headed  "Yes,"  are  the  following 
names:  F.  A.  Morris,  G.  W.  Horn,  W.  S.  Woodard,  D.  M. 
Proctor,  M.  M.  Pugh,  D.  R.  McAnally,  J.  W.  Lewis,  T.  M. 
Finney,  D.  A.  Murphy,  J.  T.  Peery,  N.  M.  Talbot,  W.  J.  Brown, 
and  J.  E.  Godbey.  The  following  answered  "I  think  so:"  H. 
N.  Watts,  D.  J.  Marquis,  G.  C.  Knowles,  John  Campbell,  L.  B. 
Ellis,  and  G.  P.  Smith. 

Brother  Lewis  assisted  me  in  getting  the  above  answers. 
Some  of  the  preachers  did  not  answer  either  question.  Some 
answered  one  who  did  not  answer  the  other.  There  may  have 
been  some  who  did  not  have  an  opportunity  to  record  their 
answers. 

The  oath  took  effect  on  Saturday  before  the  first  Sunday  in 
September.  Some  weeks  before  I  had  published  that  I  would 
preach  a  funeral  at  the  Stone  Church,  St.  Francois  County,  on 
the  second  Sabbath.  At  the  appointed  time  I  was  at  the  ap- 
pointed place.  Some  of  the  friends  said:  "Don't  preach  ;  you 
will  be  arrested  :  the  officer  is  on  the  ground."  I  decided  not 
to  disappoint  my  congregation.  At  the  close  of  the  services  it 
was  announced  that  there  would  be  preaching  that  afternoon. 

The  hour  came,  the  congregation  was  there,  a  number  of 
preachers  were  present,  not  one  of  whom  would  preach.  My 
health  was  feeble,  yet  I  was  able  to  read,  with  some  emphasis, 
the  224th  hymn  : 

Shall  I,  for  fear  of  feeble  man, 
The  Spirit's  course  in  me  restrain? 
Or,  undismayed  in  deed  and  word, 
Be  a  true  witness  for  my  Lord? 

Awed  by  a  mortal's  frown,  shall  I 
Conceal  the  word  of  God  most  high? 
How  then  before  thee  shall  I  dare 
To  stand,  or  how  thine  anger  bear? 

Shall  I,  to  soothe  th'  unholy  throng, 
Soften  thy  truth,  and  smooth  my  tongue, 
To  gain  earth's  gilded  toys,  or  flee 
The  cross  endured,  my  Lord,  by  thee? 

What  then  is  he  whose  scorn  I  dread, 
Whose  wrath  or  hate  makes  me  afraid  ? 
A  man  !  an  heir  of  death,  a  slave 
To  sin  !  a  bubble  on  the  wave. 


1865-66.  St.  Louis  Conference.  217 

Yes,  let  men  rage,  since  thou  wilt  spread 
Thy  shad' wing  wings  around  my  head: 
Since  in  all  pain  thy  tender  love 
Will  still  my  sure  refreshment  prove. 

The  sermon  that  followed  was  impromptu.  Text:  "I  have 
not  shunned  to  declare  unto  you  all  the  counsel  of  God."  (Acts 
xx.  27.)  Brother  White  preached  at  night.  The  meeting  con- 
tinued two  weeks,  with  gracious  results. 

I  preached  in  nearly  every  county  in  South-east  Missouri; 
and  was  indicted  (so  I  Jiave  been  informed)  in  Jefferson,  St. 
Francois,  Cape  Girardeau,  and  Crawford  Counties,  but  was  never 
arrested.  I  witnessed  but  one  arrest — that  of  Rev.  Reuben 
Watts  by  the  sheriff  of  Bollinger  County. 

CHURCH  IN  BOONVILLE. 

Boonville,  like  Lexington,  has  an  early  interest- 
ing history.  Prior  to  railroads  it  was  one  of  the 
leading  towns  in  the  State.  It  flourished  most  in 
the  days  of  steam-boats,  and  was  one  of  the  most 
important  shipping  points  on  the  Missouri  River. 
It  had  extensive  trade,  and  supplied  the  country 
south  of  it  for  hundreds  of  miles,  extending  at  one 
time,  if  we  mistake  not,  as  far  as  the  Arkansas  line. 
Wagons  might  have  been  seen  in  South-west  Mis- 
souri, on  the  different  roads,  conveying  the  prod- 
uce of  the  country  to  Boonville,  and  returning 
laden  with  all  kinds  of  goods  to  meet  the  wants 
and  demands  of  the  people. 

The  citizens  of  Boonville,  like  those  of  Lexing- 
ton, have  always  been  distinguished  for  their  cult- 
ure, intelligence,  refinement,  and  sociability. 

The  history  of  the  Methodist  Church  is  so  close- 
ly interwoven  with  that  of  Boonville  that  it  would 
be  difficult  to  separate  them.  They  have  grown 


218  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

up  together ;  for  the  pioneer  preachers  planted  the 
standard  of  Methodism  there  at  an  early  period, 
and  for  many  years  it  has  held  a  high  position 
among  the  Churches  of  Missouri.  Its  pulpit  has 
been  filled  by  the  best  talents  of  the  Church — such 
as  Father  Light,  Joseph  Boyle,  and  others. 

When  the  division  of  the  Methodist  Church  took 
place  in  1844  tne  Church  at  Boonville  adhered  to 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  They  lived  in  the  un- 
disturbed and  peaceable  possession  of  their  house 
of  worship  until  the  Civil  War.  The  M.  E.  Church, 
in  their  raid  through  Missouri,  seizing  the  prop- 
erty of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  certainly  would 
not  have  overlooked  the  church  at  Boonville, 
as  they  had  taken  forcible  possession  of  other 
churches  elsewhere  of  much  less  value. 

The  following  particulars  respecting  the  seizure 
of  the  church  were  sent  to  the  St.  Louis  Christian 
Advocate  by  a  citizen  of  Boonville  who,  it  seems, 
was  not  a  member  of  the  Church,  and  who  signed 
himself  "An  Honest  Looker-on:  " 

It  affords  the  people  of  this  community  pleasure  to  hear  from 
other  quarters;  perhaps  others  would  be  equally  interested  to 
hear  from  us.  I  write  more  especially  for  the  Church  which  I 
believe  your  paper  represents. 

The  pastor  of  the  Southern  Methodist  Church,  appointed  bv 
the  last  session  of  the  Annual  Conference,  took  charge  of  his 
congregation  a  few  weeks  ago.  He  had  not  been  here  more 
than  two  or  three  weeks  before  he  and  his  congregation  were 
turned  out-of-doors  by  the  Methodist  Episcopal  preacher  in 
this  city.  First,  under  pretense  of  an  order  from  the  Countv 
Court,  he  demanded  the  key,  with  all  the  authority  usually  ex- 
hibited by  his  class  on  such  occasions.  Failing  in  this,  he  se- 
cured the  co-operation  of  a  few  kindred  spirits,  and,  having  se- 


1865-66.  *5V.  Louis  Conference.  219 

cured  the  services  of  one  skilled  in  such  matters,  proceeded  to 
the  Church,  about  the  going  down  of  the  sun,  effected  an  en- 
trance, removed  the  locks,  replaced  them  with  new  ones,  and 
took  possession  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.  It  was  not  the  last  of 
the  old  .year,  but  it  is  said  that  they  kept  ivtitch-night  (.*),  it  being 
as  they  supposed  the  last  of  the  old  Church.  Whether  their 
devotions  kept  pace  with  their  watchfulness  we  are  not  in- 
formed. Meanwhile,  in  strict  conformity  to  the  Scriptures, 
they  -vatchcd;  also  having  their  sentries  (armed  it  is  supposed) 
stationed  at  the  door;  not  knowing  what  hour  the  thief  might 
come,  they  tvafchcd  until  the  morning.  If  they  expected  any 
interference  from  the  owners  or  former  occupants,  they  have 
yet  to  learn  that  it  will  not  do  in  every  case  to  judge  others  by 
themselves.  For  the  first  time  in  many  years  their  hearts  in- 
clined them  to  go  to  the  house  of  prayer. 

The  eyes  of  the  community  have  since  regarded  some  of 
these  with  peculiar  solicitude,  looking  for  further  indications  of 
a  future  religious  development;  but  the  old  proverb  is  verified: 
"  The  dog  is  turned  to  his  own  vomit  again ;  and,  The  sow  that 
was  washed  to  her  wallowing."  Alas  for  Ephraim!  his  good- 
ness was  transient  as  the  morning  cloud  and  early  dew. 

The  day  of  their  calamity  did  not  overtake  the  poor  South- 
ern Methodists  unprepared.  They  were  found  with  their  lamps 
trimmed  and  oil  in  their  vessels.  There  was  a  good  supply  of 
fuel,  properly  prepared,  carpets,  Sunday-school  library,  etc. 
They  found  the  house  itself  swept  and  garnished.  The  ladies 
had  given  it  a  thorough  cleansing  only  a  day  or  two  before. 
Poor  souls!  their  labor  was  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord. 

Southern  Methodism  in  this  city,  though  cast  down,  has  not 
been  destroyed.  Sister  Churches  felt  and  manifested  sympa- 
thy. The  Presbyterians  kindly  offered  the  use  of  their  church 
on  the  following  SaDoath,  and  a  gentleman  who  makes  no  pre- 
tensions to  religion  generously  tendered  the  use  of  a  hall,  which 
they  are  now  occupying.  The  varied  character  of  the  seats — 
chairs,  boxes,  rough  plank,  old  sofas,  etc. — might  excite  a  smile; 
but,  under  the  circumstances,  they  are  regarded  as  very  com- 
fortable. The  attendance  on  the  services  of  the  sanctuary  has 
doubled  since  this  wholesale  excommunication.  The  same  is 
true  of  the  Sabbath-school;  and  on  every  hand  there  are  mani- 
festations of  increasing  interest.  The  Church  is  manifesting  a 


220  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

very  good  state  of  feeling,  exhibiting  very  little  of  that  bitter- 
ness and  malice  which  such  injuries  are  apt  to  engender. 

A  writ  prohibiting  the  interference  of  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church  with  the  property  and  rights  of  the  Southern  Meth- 
odists was  granted  by  proper  authority,  and  was  sustained  t>y 
the  Circuit  Court  last  week.  The  former  occupants  patiently 
wait  for  the  officers  of  the  law  to  execute  their  trusts. 

REV.  SAMUEL  S.  HEADLEE. 
The  news  of  the  unprovoked,  deliberate,  and 
cruel  murder  of  this  good  man,  whose  righteous 
life  and  extensive  usefulness  were  well  known 
throughout  South-west  Missouri,  filled  many  hearts 
with  sadness  and  spread  gloom  all  over  the  coun- 
try. It  produced  a  lasting  sensation,  and  made  a 
profound  impression.  But  we  have  not  space 
to  enlarge.  Read  the  following  thrilling  narra- 
tive: 

Rev.  Samuel  S.  Headlee  was  a  native  of  Tennessee.  His  par- 
ents moved  to  Missouri  at  an  early  day,  where  Mr.  Headlee  was 
raised,  converted  to  God,  and  entered  the  ministry.  He  was 
received  on  trial  in  the  St.  Louis  Conference  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  at  Lexington,  in  1852,  Bishop  Paine  presiding, 
D.  R.  McAnally,  Secretary,  and  was  appointed  to  Rich  Wood 
Circuit,  in  the  Jefferson  City  District,  with  J.  K.  Lacy  as  pre- 
siding elder.  He  was  returned  to  the  same  circuit  the  next 
vear,  onlv  it  was  put  into  the  St.  Louis  District,  with  W.  Brown- 
ing presiding  elder.  The  next  year  he  was  admitted  into  full 
connection,  and  appointed  to  the  St.  Louis  Circuit.  The  next 
vear  he  was  appointed  to  the  Tremont  Circuit,  in  the  Springfield 
District.  Wherever  he  went  he  was  a  faithful  and  acceptable 
minister  of  the  Lord  Jesus  in  word  and  doctrine.  It  is  need- 
less to  follow  him  through  all  of  his  appointments  and  all  of  his 
labors.  He  was  humble,  pious,  and  zealous,  unobtrusive  and 
diligent;  not  profound  or  brilliant,  but  possessed  of  a  mind 
deeply  imbued  with  religious  principles,  and  thoroughly  sanc- 
tified by  grace  divine,  he  gained  readv  access  to  the  hearts  and 


1865-66.  St.  Louis  Conference.  221 

confidence  of    the  people,  and   was  everywhere  "  highly  es- 
teemed in  love  for  his  work's  sake." 

The  most  of  his  life  was  spent  in  the  counties  of  South-west 
Missouri,  where  few  men  stood  higher  in  the  estimation  of  the 
people,  and  none  had  a  purer  record  or  a  more  spotless  charac- 
ter. He  loved  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  sincerity — loved  his 
cause,  loved  the  souls  of  men,  and  publicly  and  from  house  to 
house  ceased  not  to  warn  men  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come. 
He  gained  for  himself  "a  good  report  of  them  which  are  with- 
out," as  well  as  among  his  own  brethren. 

Dr.  McAnally  says  of  him:  "The  love  of  Christ  constrained 
him,  and  he  preached  'the  word,  reproved,  rebuked,  exhorted 
with  all  long-suffering  and  doctrine.'  Ardently  loving  the 
Church  of  his  choice,  and  having  a  good  understanding  of  her 
doctrines,  discipline,  and  usages,  he  labored  faithfully  and  con- 
stantly to  extend  the  benign  influences  of  Christianity,  as  devel- 
oped through  that  organization,  and  everywhere  sought  to  build 
up  believers  in  their  most  holy  faith.  He  was  truly  exemplary 
in  the  full  sense  of  that  word.  To  his  superiors  in  age,  wis- 
dom, and  experience  he  was  deferential  and  respectful;  to  his 
equals,  courteous  and  agreeable ;  and  to  the  weak  and  erring  he 
was  pitiful  and  kind.  For  his  meek,  quiet,  inoffensive  spirit  he 
was  remarkable.  Possessed  of  exceedingly  tender  and  delicate 
sensibilities,  he  acted  toward  others  as  if  they  possessed  the 
same,  and  would  not  willingly  wrong  any  one,  harm  any  one, 
or  offend  any  one.  His  naturally  mild  and  quiet  disposition  was 
greatly  impioved  and  sweetened  by  the  refining  influences  of 
deep,  earnest,  and  consistent  piety — a  piety  consisting  in  supreme 
love  to  God  and  universal  love  to  man.  He  was  the  enemy  of 
none;  nor  was  there  an  intelligent,  honest,  upright,  or  good 
man  or  woman  in  all  the  land  that  was  an  enemy  to  him.  A 
truer,  kindlier,  sweeter-spirited,  or  more  heavenly-minded  man 
is  rarely  found." 

His  last  appointment  was  presiding  elder  of  the  Springfield 
District,  St.  Louis  Conference,  where  he  labored  faithfully  and 
extensively  to  reclaim  the  waste  places,  to  reorganize  and  re- 
build the  scattered  and  desolated  Church. 

So  complete  and  extensive  had  been  the  wreck  and  ruin  of 
the  Church  in  that  part  of  the  State  that  for  years  after  the  war 
closed  it  was  called,  by  way  of  distinction,  "the  burnt  district." 


222  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

In  this  "  burnt  district "  but  few  churches  remained  standing,  and 
but  few  Societies  preserved  an  organized  existence.  Mr.  Headlee 
had  done  as  much,  if  not  more,  than  any  other  man  in  that  part  of 
the  State  to  save  the  Church,  prevent  disintegration  and  absorp- 
tion, and  defeat  the  purposes  of  the  Northern  Methodist  disorgan- 
izers  and  church  thieves.  He  was  faithful  amid  the  faithless, 
but  neither  officious  in  the  affairs  of  others  nor  offensive  to  any 
right-minded,  honest  man.  Yet  his  firmness  and  fidelity  to 
principle,  though  quietly  and  cautiously  maintained,  encouraged 
the  timid,  assured  the  doubtful,  steadied  the  wavering,  inspired 
hope  and  courage  everywhere,  and  thus  defeated  the  purposes 
of  designing  men,  and  provoked  the  malice — even  vengeance — 
of  the  faithless  fanatics  who  were  bent  on  the  destruction  of  the 
Southern  Methodist  Church.  To  be  a  faithful,  devoted  South- 
ern Methodist  preacher,  in  that  country  at  that  time,  who  could 
neither  be  scared  nor  bought,  was  equal  to  a  man's  life.  Mr. 
Headlee  had  prevented  some  Churches  from  breaking  up  and 
becoming  a  prey  to  the  prowling  wolves  in  sheep's  clothing,  and 
was  extensively  useful  in  gathering  the  scattered  membership 
and  reorganizing  the  dismembered  Societies.  The  following  nar- 
rative of  his  cruel  murder  will  show  how  much  this  "work  of 
faith  and  labor  of  love  "  cost  him,  and  how  much  it  was  worth 
to  the  Church.  In  the  same  biographical  sketch  from  which 
quotations  have  already  been  made  the  following  account  of 
his  murder  is  given: 

"His  death  occurred  on  Saturday,  July  28,  1866;  and  never, 
perhaps,  in  all  the  history  of  the  United  States  was  there  a  more 
deliberate,  a  more  unprovoked,  or  more  atrocious  murder. 

"  The  killing  was  done  in  Webster  County,  near  what  has  been 
called  Pleasant  View  Church — a  house  of  worship  legally  and 
morally  belonging  to  the  denomination  of  which  Mr.  Headlee 
was  a  minister.  As  presiding  elder  of  the  Springfield  District, 
this  Church  was  in  his  bounds  and  regularly  under  his  care. 

"  Thither  he  had  gone  to  hold  a  quarterly  meeting  and  reor- 
ganize the  Church,  which  had  been  greatly  scattered,  torn,  and 
distressed  by  the  public  troubles  of  the  country. 

"The  appointment  of  the  meeting  had  been  publicly  an- 
nounced and  generally  circulated  for  some  time  previous.  At 
the  appointed  time  Mr.  Headlee  arrived  at  the  church  punctu- 
ally, and  was  met  by  an  armed  band  of  some  twenty  or  more 


1865-66.  St.  L,outs  Conference.  223 

men.  These  men  were  led  (or  seemed  to  be  led)  by  one  Hen- 
derson McNabb,  a  man  who  at  the  beginning  of  the  late  war 
was  a  member  and  once  a  steward  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
but  who  some'time  during  the  war  changed  his  Church  relations 
by  attaching  himself  to  the  M.  E.  Church  (North);  and,  for 
aught  I  know  or  have  ever  heard,  is  still  a  member  of  that 
Church.  This  man  acted  as  spokesman  for  the  armed  company, 
and  told  Mr.  Headlee  that  he  could  not  and  should  not  preach 
in  that  church,  and  threatened  him  with  violence  if  he  attempt- 
ed it.  Mr.  Headlee  expostulated,  and  asked  by  what  authority 
they  threatened  him  and  forbade  his  preaching  to  the  people 
then  and  there  assembled  at  their  own  house.  McNabb,  waving 
his  hand  to  the  armed  band,  replied:  "There  is  my  authority." 
The  parties  being  well  known  to  each  other,  Mr.  Headlee  pro- 
posed a  friendly  discussion,  and  stated  that  he  knew  that  he  was 
preaching  without  having  subscribed  to  the  oath  required  by 
the  new  Constitution,  but  that  he  was  ready  and  willing  to  an- 
swer to  the  law  for  that,  and  that  he  expected  to  answer.  In 
reply  he  was  told  that  they  cared  nothing  about  the  law,  but  in- 
tended to  stop  his  preaching  there. 

"  Finding  all  his  persuasions  vain,  and  being  abused  and 
cursed  the  more  mild  he  was,  Mr.  Headlee  at  length  proposed  to 
go  to  the  grove,  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  distant — which 
grove  was  on  his  own  land — and  there  preach,  provided  they 
would  not  interrupt  him.  To  this  they  agreed.  He  and  a  num- 
ber of  the  people  then  prepared  to  go.  As  he  was  going  to  his 
horse  some  of  the  band  placed  the  muzzles  of  their  guns  against 
him,  pushing  him  forward,  all  the  time  using  foul  and  abusive 
language.  His  only  remark  was:  "Let  me  alone;  I  can  walk 
without  help." 

He  and  his  company  having  gone  about  half  a  mile  toward 
the  designated  grove,  four  of  the  armed  band  came  galloping 
up.  One  rode  up  to  Mr.  Headlee's  side  and  began  abusing  him 
and  asking  some  impertinent  questions.  Mr.  Headlee  replied: 
"  If  you  talk  to  me  as  a  gentleman,  I  will  talk  to  you."  At  this 
the  man  drew  a  revolver  and  fired  three  shots.  The  first  en- 
tered Mr.  Headlee's  right  side  and  passed  through  the  lungs, 
the  second  passed  through  the  lapel  of  his  coat  on  the  right 
side,  and  the  third  struck  him  on  the  hip,  making  only  a  flesh 
wound.  The  assassin  and  his  accomplices  then  galloped  back 


224  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

a  short  distance  to  McNabb's  house,  where  the  rest  of  the  band 
were  waiting. 

On  being  shot  Mr.  Headlee  neither  screamed,  nor  spoke,  nor 
moaned,  nor  did  he  change  his  position  in  the  saddle ;  but  sit- 
ting erect  as  though  nothing  had  happened,  he  rode  some  fifty 
yards  to  a  shade,  alighted  from  his  horse,  took  off  his  gloves, 
put  them  in  his  pocket,  and  calmly  remarked,  "Friends,  I  am  a 
dead  man,"  and  turning  his  face  toward  his  murderers,  who 
were  still  in  sight,  added:  "Those  bad  men  have  killed  me! 
Lord  have  mercy  upon  them !  Lord  save  them ! "  The  men  in 
company  with  Mr.  Headlee  were  terror-stricken,  not  knowing 
but  that  they  would  next  be  shot;  but  the  women  acted  the  part 
of  true  Christian  heroines,  and  waited  around  the  d\ring  martyr 
as  faithfully  as  others  of  their  sex  once  waited  around  the  cross 
of  the  dying  Saviour. 

The  nature  of  the  wound  and  the  intensity  of  the  suffering 
were  such  that  he  had  to  be  kept  in  a  sitting  posture.  After 
considerable  delay  and  some  trouble  a  chair  was  procured  on 
which  he  was  carried  to  the  house  of  his  sister,  half  a  mile  dis- 
tant, where  he  died  at  10  o'clock  that  night. 

His  home  was  twelve  or  fifteen  miles  distant.  His  wife  was 
immediately  sent  for,  and  what  occurred  after  she  reached  him 
an  eye-witness  relates  as  follows: 

"  He  was  shot  near  1 2  o'clock,  and  his  wife  reached  him  about 
7  o'clock.  When  she  went  in  he  raised  his  right  arm  and  put 
it  around  her,  but  did  not  speak  for  a  minute  or  more.  He  then 
said  (she  was  crying  and  sobbing):  'Ma,  you  must  not  grieve 
for  me.  I  thought  I  was  doing  right;  I  still  think  I  was  doing 
my  Master's  work.  Think  of  me  often,  and  tell  my  brethren 
I  fell  at  my  post.  All  is  clear;  I  have  no  doubt  as  to  my  accept- 
ance with  God;  my  whole  trust  is  in  the  mercy  of  God  through 
the  mediation  of  Jesus  Christ.'  He  then  told  her  all  that  passed 
between  him  and  McNabb;  how  they  called  him  names,  and 
one  ruffian  caught  hold  of  him  and  pushed  him  around  and 
jerked  him  about  till  a  lady  interfered;  said  he  did  not  for  a 
moment  lose  his  balance;  that  he  kept  calm  and  tried  to  reason 
with  them.  He  said  he  knew  he  had  to  die  as  soon  as  the  man 
'Drake'  rode  up.  His  wife  asked  him  if  he  did  not  feel  scared. 
'No,  no,' said  he; 'I  never  felt  the  least  alarmed  or  excited.' 
'How  did  you  feel  when  he  drew  his  revolver?'  asked  his  wife. 


1865-66.  St.  Louis  Conference.  225 

'Well,'  said  he,  'God  had  most  graciously  removed  all  fear  of 
death  by  violence.  I  knew  that  my  time  was  come,  and  I  felt 
that  I  was  ready  and  willing  to  go.'  He  told  her  that  she  must 
not  let  the  children  forget  pa ;  that  she  must  talk  to  them  of  him 
often,  and  train  them  for  heaven  and  glory.  His  talk  with  his 
wife  was  with  much  difficulty,  as  his  lungs  were  all  the  time 
bleeding  profusely,  and  he  was  suffering  intensely  and  sinking 
rapidly.  Just  one  hour  before  he  died  his  only  brother  reached 
him.  He  was  then  wading  deep  in  the  cold  Jordan  of  death; 
but  on  seeing  his  brother  he  held  out  his  hand  and  said:  'Asbury, 
I'm  almost  home;  I'm  almost  home!  O  that  I  had  strength  and 
time  to  tell  of  my  prospects  of  heaven  and  immortality!  O 
those  bad  men,  those  bad  men!  Lord  have  mercy  upon  them! 
Lord  save  them!'  With  but  a  few  words  more  of  endearment 
to  his  wife  and  messages  of  love  to  his  children  he  fell  asleep, 
not  gently,  like  the  babe  on  its  mother's  bosom,  but  with  in- 
tense physical  agony,  like  the  martyred  Stephen  amid  a  volley 
of  stones.  Thus  he  lived  and  thus  he  passed  away."* 

PASTORAL  ADDRESS. 

The  following  interesting  and  important  Pastoral 
Address  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference  of 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  which  contains  so  much 
wise  counsel,  good  advice,  and  Christian  love,  will 
very  appropriately  close  the  history  of  this  year: 

The  preachers  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  to  the  brethren 
still  in  our  bounds  and  to  those  who  are  scattered  abroad,  greet- 
ing: "Grace  unto  you,  and  peace  be  multiplied." 

We  give  glory  to  the  King  of  kings  that  the  storm  of  civil 
war  which  has  rolled  over  us  for  four  years  is  ended,  and  that 
peace  returns  with  healing  wings. 

In  the  general  devastation  we  have  suffered  greatly  in  com- 
mon with  other  Protestant  Churches,  and  perhaps  we  have 
suffered  most.  "  But  having  obtained  help  of  God,  we  continue 
to  this  day,"  and  are  in  good  hope  of  recovering  soon  all  that 
we  have  lost. 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 

15 


226  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1865-66. 

1.  The  following  brief  statement  will  give  you  some  idea  of 
the  present  state  of  the  Church  in  our  bounds: 

In  St.  Louis  District  we  have  been  permitted  to  hold  and 
occupy  all  our  houses  of  worship,  have  kept  up  the  regular 
work,  and  have  been  blessed  with  revivals  of  religion  in  most 
of  the  circuits  and  stations. 

In  Boonville  District  the  work  has  been  greatlv  disturbed; 
nevertheless  we  have  held  our  churches  and  have  had  some 
success  in  various  places. 

In  Lexington  District  the  appointments  have  been  generally 
filled  on  the  Wellington,  Saline,  Arrow  Rock,  and  Dover  Cir- 
cuits and  the  Lexington  Station,  and  with  revivals  of  religion. 
But  on  the  rest  of  the  district  the  work  has  been  broken  up, 
and  some  of  our  churches  burned  or  so  mutilated  that  they  are 
unfit  for  use.  In  the  city  of  Independence  our  church  and  par- 
sonage are  in  the  hands  of  the  Northern  Methodists,  which 
they  hold  without  our  consent  and  to  our  injury.  On  this  con- 
duct of  theirs  comment  is  unnecessary.  We  will  only  add  that  we 
hope  soon  to  regain  the  possession  of  our  property  in  that 
place. 

In  Steelville  District  we  hold  the  possession  of  all  our 
Church  property;  on  five  of  the  circuits  the  regular  work  has 
been  kept  up;  gracious  revivals  on  F.redericktown,  De  Soto, 
Richmond,  and  Caledonia  Circuits,  and  on  the  last  named  three, 
hundred  accessions  during  the  past  two  years. 

In  Cape  Girardeau  District  the  circuits  have  been  generally 
twiithout  preachers  during  the  war,  some  of  the  churches  de,- 
stroyed,  and  the  regular  work  of  preaching  for  the  most  part 
suspended;  but  at  Charleston,  Bertrand,  Big  Lake,  and  Rush's 
Ridge  the  appointments  have  been  filled  with  success. 

In  Springfield  and  Lebanon  Districts  the  country,  with  here 
and  there  an  exception,  has  been  desolated  by  the  war,  churches 
burnt  up  in  common  with  all  other  things,  preachers  driven  off, 
and  the  people  scattered. 

In  'lacking  over  the  whole  field,  while  we  deplore  what 
we  have  suffered,  we  are  thankful  that  we  have  not  been  de- 
stroyed; rand  with  the  blessing  of  God  upon  our  mutual  la- 
bors we  :hope  soon  to  see  the  wilderness  and  the  solitary  place 
made  glad -and  the  desert  rejoicing  as  the  rose. 

2.  y.cui.has«e  noticed  in  the  newspapers  an  occasional  article 


1865-66.  St.  Horn's  Conference.  227 

about  the  reunion  of  the  Northern  and  Southern  Methodist 
Churches.  All  that  we  have  to  say  on  this  subject  is  that  in 
our  judgment  the  reunion  is  neither  desirable  nor  practicable. 
From  all  that  we  can  learn  about  the  matter,  it  seems  to  be  the 
universal  desire  and  the  purpose  of  our  preachers  and  people 
to  maintain  our  own  ecclesiastical  organization. 

3.  We  cannot  close  this  brief  address  without  exhorting  you, 
dear  brethren,  to  be  faithful  to  God  in  these  "perilous  times." 
"  Evil  men  and  seducers  will  wax  worse  and  worse,  deceiving 
and  being  deceived."  "  But  ye,  beloved,  building  up  yourselves 
on  your  most  holy  faith,  praying  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  keep 
yourselves  in  the  love  of  God,  looking  for  the  mercy  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  unto  eternal  life.'11  "  Be  patient,  brethren  " — patient 
amid  all  trials  and  persecutions,  amid  the  agitations  and  com- 
motions of  the  world — "for  the  coming  of  the  Lord  draweth 
nigh."  While  the  infidel  scoffs  and  sneers,  saying,  "Where  is 
the  promise  of  his  coming?"  and  while  "the  evil  servant  saith 
in  his  heart,  My  Lord  delayeth  his  coming,"  and  is  smiting  his 
fellow-servants,  eating  and  drinking  with  the  drunken,  "let  us 
consider  one  another  to  provoke  unto  love  and  to  good  works: 
.  .  .  exhorting  one  another;  and  so  much  the  more,  as  ye  see 
the  day  approaching."  Know  "  the  time,  that  now  it  is  high  time 
to  awake  out  of  sleep:  for  now  is  our  salvation  nearer  than  when 
we  believed.  The  night  is  far  spent,  the  day  is  at  hand."  The 
long  and  dreadful  night  of  the  world's  curse  is  far  spent,  and  the 
day -break  of  eternity  is  at  hand.  And  when  that  glad  morning 
shall  break  gloriously  forth,  darkened  by  no  cloud  and  followed 
by  no  night,  with  what  exultation  shall  the  song  be  sung: 
"Arise,  shine;  for  thy  light  is  come,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord 
is  risen  upon  thee.  .  .  .  Thy  sun  shall  no  more  go  down;  nei- 
ther shall  thy  moon  withdraw  itself:  for  the  Lord  shall  be  thine 
everlasting  light,  and  the  days  of  thy  mourning  shall  be  ended!" 
May  the  Lord  hasten  it  in  his  time! 

Finally,  brethren,  pray  for  us  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  may 
have  free  course  and  be  glorified,  even  as  it  is  with  you,  and 
that  we  may  be  delivered  from  unreasonable  and  wicked  men, 
for  all  men  have  not  faith.  But  the  Lord  is  faithful  who  shall 
stablish  you  and  keep  you  from  evil. 


CHAPTER  X. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

The  Sound  of  the  Battle-cry  Is  no  Longer  Heard — Session  of  the 
Conference  at  Lexington — Bishop  Doggett  Presided — Statis- 
tical Business — Memoirs  of  J.  T.  Davenport,  W.  H.  Mobley, 
L.  Riley,  John  McEwin,  S.  S.  Headlee— Rev.  L.  F.  Aspley's 
Trials  in  Time  of  the  War — Church  at  Potosi  Captured — Rev. 
J.  C.  Williams  in  Trouble — Origin  and  Early  History  of 
Methodism  in  St.  Louis — Revival  Notice  of  Rev.  W.  L. 
Powell  and  Other  Ministers — A  Description  of  the  Different 
Charges  in  St.  Louis  in  Connection  with  the  Introduction  of 
the  Church  Conference  as  a  New  Institution  of  the  Church — 
Accounts  of  Revivals  by  .Rev.  D.  J.  Marquis,  W.  G.  Horn, 
Rev.  J.  A.  Murphy,  and  Others. 

IT  is  a  very  gratifying  thought  that  with  the  his- 
tory of  this  year  the  persecution  of  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  will  terminate.  There  will  be  no 
more  bloody  scenes  through  which  to  conduct  the 
reader,  no  more  heart-rending  tragedies  of  cruel 
murder,  of  midnight  assassinations,  no  more  strick- 
en hearts  and  desolate  homes.  How  thankful  we 
feel  that  the  chapter  of  suffering  will  soon  have 
ended.  Then  the  thoughts  of  the  writer  and  of  the 
reader  will  be  turned  to  things  more  in  harmony 
with  their  tastes  and  feelings. 

On  the  i8th  of  September,  1866,  the  annual  ses- 
sion of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  was  opened  at 
Lexington,  Mo.,  by  Bishop  Doggett,  the  President 
of  the  Conference,  and  W.  M.  Prottsman  was 
elected  Secretary. 
(228) 


1866-67.  <SV.  Louis  Conference.  229 

J.  F.  Hogan,  L.  P.  Siceloff,  T.  M.  Cobb,  and 
J.  D.  Wood  were  admitted  on  trial;  and  C.  C. 
Wright,  S.  A.  Blakey,  L.  W.  Powell,  and  J.  S. 
Frazier  remained  on  trial.  L.  Pulliam,  W.  C. 
Godbey,  and  P.  W.  Duncan  were  admitted  into  full 
connection;  and  A.  M.  Rader,  A.  W.  Thompson, 
M.  R.  Anthony,  and  A.  Peace  were  re-admitted 
into  full  connection.  The  traveling  preachers  W. 
C.  Godbey,  L.  Pulliam,  and  P.  W.  Duncan  were 
elected  and  ordained  deacons;  and  the  local 
preachers  J.  A.  Ross,  E.  K.  Porter,  T.  M.  L. 
Bedsworth,  and  J.  F.  Hogan  were  elected  and  or- 
dained deacons.  L.  F.  Aspley,  G.  C.  Knowles, 
and  S.  P.  Smith,  traveling  preachers,  were  elected 
and  ordained  elders.  J.  McCary,  J.  Godbey,  H. 
S.  Watts,  and  W.  B.  Quinn  were  supernumerary; 
and  C.  Eaker,  A.  Rucker,  J.  T.  Peery,  J.  N.  W. 
Springer,  W.  R.  Babcock,  J.  McGhee,  A.  Nich- 
aolds,  N.  T.Shaler,  and  J.  Thomas  were  superan- 
nuated. 

They  reported  this  year  7,912  white  members, 
43  colored,  and  65  local  preachers.  No  report  from 
Springfield  District. 

The  following  five  ministers  died  this  year:  J. 
T.  Davenport,  W.  H.  Mobley,  Luther  Riley,  John 
McEwin,  and  S.  S.  Headlee.  No  memoir  of 
Davenport  and  Riley:  have  already  given  that  of 
Headlee. 

John  McEwin. — We  cannot  say  when  and  where  Brother 
McEwin  commenced  to  preach  the  gospel.  The  first  mention 
of  his  name  on  our  present  records  is  in  1854,  when  he  was 
superannuated.  We  believe  he  sustained  that  relation  to  the 


230  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

Conference  till  his  death.  He  was  always  ready  and  willing  to 
do  what  he  could.  He  preached  faithfully  and  his  labors  were 
blessed.  He  left  his  home  in  Wayne  County,  Mo.,  to  visit  his 
daughter  in  Saline  County,  and  on  his  way,  near  Versailles,  he 
\vas  taken  sick  and  died  August  5,  1866.  He  was  advanced  in 
age,  and  had  been  much  afflicted  for  years.  He  died  in  peace. 
W.  H.  Moblcy  was  born  in  Kentucky  in  the  year  1830.  In 
1852  he  removed  to  Missouri.  In  1854  he  was  licensed  to  preach 
and  joined  the  St.  Louis  Conference.  He  continued  to  travel 
and  preached  regularlv  until  i86i,when  the  troubles  of  the  war 
compelled  him  to  fly  to  Arkansas,  where  he  remained  till  1865. 
He  was  taken  sick  with  consumption  in  this  year,  and  went  to 
Kentucky,  that  he  might  die  among  his  friends.  He  died  in 
Hickman  County,  Ky.,  July  27,  1865.  A  short  time  before  his 
death  he  requested  his  wife  to  have  a  letter  written  to  his 
brethren  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference,  to  inform  them  where 
and  how  he  died.  About  the  last  words  he  spoke  were:  "If  I 
know  anything,  all  is  right  with  me."  His  submission  to  God 
is  expressed  by  him  thus:  "The  will  of  the  Lord  be  done."  Be- 
fore he  died  he  selected  as  a  text  for  his  funeral  sermon:  "  For 
me  to  live  is  Christ;  to  die  is  gain."  lie  was  a  good  man  and 
an  efficient  preacher.  He  rests  in  hope  of  a  resurrection. 

Rev.  L.  F.  Aspley,  a  faithful  member  of  the  St. 
Louis  Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South,  gives 
the  following  brief  statement  of  his  trials  during 
the  war:  "I  too  was  numbered  with  the  suffer- 
ers of  Missouri.  I  was  a  prisoner  several  times; 
my  life  was  threatened.  I  was  driven  from  home  ; 
my  house  was  burned,  and  the  last  dollar's  worth 
of  property  I  had  in  the  world  was  taken  from  me. 
I  was  indicted  twice  by  the  grand  jury  of  Scott 
County  for  preaching  without  taking  the  oath 
prescribed  by  the  new  Constitution.  I  do  not  wish 
to  complain  of  the  hardships  and  sufferings  through 
which  I  have  passed,  but  I  thank  God  that  I  was 
counted  worthy  to  suffer  for  his  name's  sake." 


1866-67.  St.  Louis  Conference.  231 

CHURCH  AT  POTOSI. 

As  has  been  already  indicated,  the  Northern 
Methodists  put  into  practical  operation  a  very  ex- 
tensive system  of  Church  seizure  in  all  parts  of 
Missouri — east,  west,  north,  and  south — embracing 
the  entire  territory  of  the  State.  If  there  was  one 
county  that  escaped  the  visitation  of  church  seizers 
or  burners,  we  have  no  knowledge  of  it. 

The  following  notice  of  the  attempt  to  capture 
the  church  at  Potosi  was  furnished  by  the  presid- 
ing elder  of  the  Potosi  District : 

I  send  you  statements  of  an  attempt  of  "our  brethren,  the 
enemy,"  to  take,  hold,  and  possess  our  church  at  Potosi. 

Some  time  during  the  year  1865  a  Maj.  Miller  came  to 
Potosi  and  reported  himself  a  minister  of  the  "old  Wesleyan 
Methodist  Church ; "  that  he  was  neither  North  nor  South,  but 
belonged  to  the  good  old  Mother  Church. 

As  our  people  had  no  pastor,  they  permitted  him  to  preach 
in  our  church,  and  attended  his  ministry.  He  made  an  earnest 
effort  to  proselyte  our  members,  but  failed.  Rumor  said  he  in- 
tended to  take  possession  of  our  church,  but  he  denied  it. 

Early  in  1866  Mr.  Sovin,  his  presiding  elder,  announced 
publicly  from  the  pulpit  on  the  Sabbath  that  the  house  belonged 
to  them,  and  henceforth  they  intended  to  hold  and  possess  the 
same. 

That  week  Brother  Wallace,  one  of  the  trustees  of  the 
Church,  who  had  been  a  member  for  twoscore  years,  locked  the 
door,  took  possession  of  the  key,  and  notified  Mr.  Miller  that  he 
could  not  preach  there  any  more. 

Mr.  Miller  then  notified  Brother  Wallace  that  he  would  bring 
suit  for  the  church.  Brother  Wallace  assured  him  that  ti'Acn 
the  law  gave  him  flic  house  he  would  give  him  the  key. 

In  the  meantime  the  Radicals  of  the  town  rented  a  hall  for 
Mr.  Miller,  in  which  they  put  an  organ  to  help  him  make 
music.  • 

I  held  a  quarterly  meeting  in  Potosi  in  January,  1867,  and 


232  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

while  there  I  learned  that  the  Rev.  Major  had  sold  his  friends' 
organ,  pocketed  the  money,  and  gone  on  a  long  journey  toward 
the  north  pole.  So  Madam  Rumor  reports. 

Our  people  are  in  quiet  possession  of  their  church-house, 
have  an  excellent  Sunday-school,  an  organ  to  help  the  children 
sing,  a  very  gratifying  increase  in  the  membership  of  the  Church, 
have  no  fears  of  being  disturbed  by  Messrs.  Sovin,  Miller  & 
Company,  unless  they  do  as  their  confederates  did  on  Castor — 
burn  the  church. 

Several  of  our  church-houses  at  other  points  have  been  quiet^ 
ly  occupied  by  them,  but  I  believe  they  have  run  their  race  and 
are  not  likely  to  trouble  us  much  more.  VV.  S.  WOODARD. 

And  how  very  short  was  their  race  when  the  au- 
thority of  military  law  ended  and  the  civil  law  was 
enforced !  Then  justice  had  a  voice  and  equity 
claimed  its  right.  Then  church-houses  were  turned 
over  to  the  persons  who  built  and  paid  for  them. 
Yes,  when  Justice  is  seated  on  her  throne,  how 
soon  do  oppression,  usurpation,  and  tyranny  dis- 
appear !  They  cannot  exist  where  the  civil  law  is 
the  governing  power.  Mr.  Wallace  knew  what  he 
was  talking  about  when  he  told  Mr.  Miller  that  he 
would  surrender  the  key  when  the  civil  law  gave 
them  the  church,  for  he  understood  full  well  that 
the  civil  law  would  protect  the  rightful  owners  in 
the  possession  of  their  property.  So  it  did,  and 
the  key  was  never  surrendered. 

REV.  J.  C.  WILLIAMS. 

Of  Mr.  Williams  the  writer  says:  "This  good 
and  useful  minister  and  member  of  the  St.  Louis 
Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South,  was  arrested 
by  ruffians,  with  pistols  in  their  hands,  in  the  midst 


1866-67-  *S^-  Louis  Conference.  233 

of  his  duties  as  a  teacher,  dragged  from  the  school- 
house,  and  taken  to  Potosi,  in  Jefferson  County, 
under  an  indictment  for  preaching.  After  giving 
bond  for  his  appearance  at  court,  he  went  on 
preaching  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  to  dying 
men,  and  was  again  indicted,  arrested,  and  put 
under  bonds."  * 

We  are  satisfied  that  the  reader  will  be  deeply 
interested  in  the  following  account  of  the  origin 
and  early  history  of  Methodism  in  St.  Louis: 

Editor  Advocate:  I  here  dedicate  to  you,  sir,  the  following 
lines  and  items,  entitled  "The  First  Days  of  Methodism  in  St. 
Louis,"  being  a  detailed  account  of  the  same  from  its  birth  and 
progress  up  to  September,  1830: 

As  yet  I  gaze,  the  vision  fades 

Like  frost-work  touched  by  Southern  gales; 

The  altar  sinks,  the  light  that's  shed 

By  glimmering  tapers — all  are  fled. 

Fled  are  they,  with  the  flight  of  time, 

Gone  down  to  ruin  and  decay; 
Now  risen  again,  more  grand,  sublime, 

They  bloom  unto  a  brighter  day. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Methodist  persuasion  ever  held  in 
St.  Louis  was  in  the  month  of  December,  1820.  In  a  log  cot- 
tage, 12  by  1 6,  which  then  stood  on  the  south-west  corner  of 
Third  and  Spruce  Streets,  the  pioneer  preacher  of  Methodism 
in  St.  Louis  first  unfurled  the  banner  of  the  cross.  This  noble 
and  beloved  embassador  of  Christ,  known  well  among  religious 
denominations  as  old  Father  Walker,  preached  here  in  this 
humble  log  cabin  to  a  still  humbler  congregation  his  first  nrrinon 
to  the  citizens  of  St.  Louis.  I  would  merely  state  here  that  the 
congregation  entire  consisted  of  Father  Walker  as  pastor, 
Brother  and  Sister  Finney,  and  three  boys;  two  of  the  three 
boys  being  myself  and  a  younger  brother.  The  other  boy  was 
named  Frank  Schoto.  This  was  the  first  congregation  which 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


234  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

met  in  St.  Louis  to  hear  the  gospel  of  the  Lord  proclaimed  by 
a  Methodist  minister. 

After  the  sermon  had  been  preached  Father  Walker  called 
on  Brother,  then  on  Sister  Finney,  to  pray,  which  they  did. 
After  the  services  had  been  concluded  Father  Walker  shook 
hands  with  us  boys,  and  said  he  was  glad  to  see  us  come  to  the 
house  of  prayer,  and  inquired  our  names.  He  spoke  encour- 
agingly to  us  and  invited  us  and  requested  us  to  invite  our  friends 
and  our  parents  and  all  to  come  to  preaching.  He  told  us  there 
would  be  preaching  on  the  Sabbath,  both  morning  and  evening, 
and  also  on  Wednesday  night;  that  there  would  be  prayer- 
meeting  every  Friday  night;  hoped  he  might  see  us  little  men 
often,  and  hoped  also  that  we  would  try  to  get  as  many  to  come 
as  we  could. 

A  meeting  was  held  on  Wednesday  night — -and  a  bitter  cold 
night  it  was — snow  about  twelve  inches  deep — and  perhaps 
this  fact  may  excuse  somewhat  the  smallness  of  the  congrega- 
tion on  that  eventful  evening — eventful  in  being  the  first  at- 
tempt in  this  great  work.  I  attended  also  or  the  following  Sab- 
bath, both  morning  and  evening,  and  the  congregation  was  in- 
creased to  about  a  dozen,  among  them  the  venerable  pair  spoken 
of  above,  and  a  widow  lady  named  Dunlavy,  afterward  known 
as  Sister  Harden,  which  name  she  obtained  by  a  second  mar- 
riage. The  meetings  were  held  regularly,  and  God  continued 
to  add  to  their  numbers.  Toward  the  end  of  the  winter  Father 
Walker  was  aided  in  the  ministry  by  Brother  Pickett,  and  occa- 
sionally by  Brother  Glanville  and  Brother  Scripps,  who  was  from 
Illineis.  By  the  time  spring  opened  up  the  little  log  cabin,  "  the 
Jionse  of  prayer,"  was  found  to  be  too  small  to  accommodate  the 
numbers  who  now  waited  upon  the  word. 

On  the  same  lot  was  also  a  long,  low,  frame  building  which 
had  been  fitted  up  for  a  theater.  At  this  time  it  was  unoccu- 
pied, and  Father  Walker  rented  it  and  converted  it  into  a 
church,  and  here  he  preached  with  energy  and  power  to  a 
growing  congregation.  Many  were  added  to  the  Church  of 
God  who  are  now  with  him  singing  praises  and  hallelujahs  to 
Him  who  sitteth  upon  the  throne  in  the  eternal  world  of  jov. 
May  I  too,  who  was  present  at  the  commencement  of  the  work, 
be  found  worthy  to  join  them  when  my  work  on  earth  is  done! 

The  congregation  continued  to  worship  in  this  house  for  a 


1866-67.  <5V.  Louis  Conference.  235 

year  or  more,  and  when  they  became  able  to  build  a  house  for 
themselves,  at  their  solicitation  Father  Walker  undertook  the 
project.  He  erected  a  church-building  on  the  north-west  corner 
of  Fourth  and  Myrtle  Streets,  where  John  H.  Gay  bought  a  res- 
idence years  after  that. 

At  this  time  there  was  a  small  congregation  of  Episcopalians 
in  St.  Louis,  who  had  a  small  frame  church  near  the  south-west 
corner  of  Second  and  Walnut  Streets.  They  had  no  pastor,  and 
were  not  able  to  procure  one.  They  proposed  to  donate  to  the 
Methodist  Church  their  pews  and  pulpit  for  the  privilege  of 
holding  service  in  the  Methodist  Church  once  on  Sabbath 
whenever  they  could  procure  a  minister.  The  arrangement 
was  agreed  to,  and  it  was  a  great  help  toward  completing  the 
church.  When  this  was  done  the  congregation  left  the  place 
where  the  first  standard  of  Methodism  had  been  planted  in  this 
then  small  city,  and  removed  to  their  new  church  on  Fourth  and 
Myrtle.  The  church  to  which  they  moved  was  a  two-story 
fi'ame  thirty-six  feet  long  by  twenty  wide,  with  galleries  on 
three  sides.  After  the  congregation  had  been  worshiping  for 
some  months  in  the  new  church  Father  Walker  preached 
a  very  touching  sermon  to  his  people.  After  the  close  of  the 
sermon  he  said  it  was  forcibly  impressed  upon  his  mind  that  his 
work  in  St.  Louis  was  about  completed ;  that  he  was  impressed 
with  the  belief  that  God  had  called  him  to  carry  the  glorious  gos- 
pel to  the  benighted  Indian,  and  that  he  was  going  to  obey  the 
call ;  that  the  Conference  would  assemble  in  a  few  weeks,  and 
that  he  would  remain  with  them  until  the  Conference  met;  that 
Conference  would  supply  them  with  another  pastor  and  send 
him  on  a  mission  to  the  red  men  of  the  frontier.  This  an- 
nouncement was  heard  by  the  congregation  with  regret.  Some — 
"yea,"  many — shed  tears,  and  they  all  felt  that  they  were  losing 
in  him  a  father  and  a  friend. 

Conference  met,  and  the  words  of  Father  Walker  were  veri- 
fied. He  preached  his  farewell  sermon  to  a  very  attentive  con- 
gregation, of  whom  I  was  one.  He  exhorted  us  to  be  faithful 
to  the  grace  given  us,  and  said:  "If  I  never  meet  you  again  on 
earth,  meet  me  in  heaven.  I  want  to  see  you  all  there — every 
one" — closed  with  the  remark  that  the  desire  of  his  heart  was 
to  spend  a  happy  eternity  with  the  members  of  the  Methodist 
Church  of  St.  Louis.  Father  Walker's  wish  was  to  be  a  pio- 


236  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

neer  in  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  to  be  the  first  to  proclaim  the 
gospel  to  poor,  perishing  sinners. 

I  do  not  remember  who  was  sent  by  the  Conference  to  the 
Church  in  St.  Louis  as  Father  Walker's  successor.  I  believe  it 
was  Brother  McAlister.  I  know  he  came  among  us  at  that 
time.  He  was  an  able  minister,  powerful  in  argument,  so  clear 
and  so  conclusive  that  he  would  convince  one  of  the  truth  of 
his  doctrine  contrary  to  his  will. 

Besides  Brother  McAlister  there  were  several  local  preachers 
living  in  St.  Louis  at  that  time.  Among  them  were  Dr.  Heath, 
of  Virginia;  Brother  Peck,  of  Tennessee;  and  Brother  Keyte, 
from  England.  So  we  had  no  lack  of  ministerial  aid.  There 
was  regular  service,  and  the  word  of  the  Lord  was  preached  to 
large  congregations,  sometimes  filling  the  church,  audience- 
room  and  galleries,  to  its  utmost  capacitv.  Many  were  added 
to  the  Church  during  the  Conference  year. 

The  next  Conference  appointed  Rev.  Andrew  Monroe  to  the 
St.  Louis  Station.  He  was  a  faithful  preacher,  and  many  sin- 
ners were  convicted  and  converted  under  his  ministry — par- 
ticularly young  men  who  united  with  the  Church  and  became 
co-workers  with  the  older  members  of  the  Church  in  cultivating 
the  Lord's  vineyard.  Nearly  all  my  old  associates  united  with 
the  Church,  and  many  of  them  have  crossed  the  river  and  are 
now  happy  and  rejoicing  in  the  paradise  of  God.  May  I  rejoin 
them  when  my  earthly  pilgrimage  is  ended! 

Brother  Monroe  was  so  successful  that  he  was  returned  by  the 
Conference  to  the  same  work  in  St.  Louis.  His  labors  the 
second  year  were  even  more  successful  than  the  first  year  had 
been.  As  his  second  year  had  expired,  and  as  he  could  not  be 
sent  back  to  the  station  the  third  year  according  to  the  Disci- 
pline, the  Conference  made  him  presiding  elder  of  the  St.  Louis 
District;  consequently  we  had  him  with  us  every  quarter  for  two 
years  more.  The  result  was  we  had  a  revival  season  every 
time  he  labored  with  us. 

By  this  time  (1828)  the  congregation  began  to  think  about 
getting  a  house  of  greater  capacitv  to  accommodate  them,  hav- 
ing become  too  large  for  the  old  church.  Col.  John  O'Fallon 
proposed  to  give  a  lot  on  Fourth  Street  and  Washington  Ave- 
nue and  $500  in  money  toward  building  a  church  on  said  lot. 
This  generous  offer  was  accepted,  and  they  proceeded  at  once  to 


1866-67-  ^-  Louis  Conference.  237 

build  the  old  "  Fourth  Street  Church,"  so  well  known  to  every 
person.  This  church-edifice  was  completed,  and  occupied  for 
the  first  time  in  the  month  of  September,  1830. 

Previous  to  its  being  occupied  Conference  met  and  began  its 
labors  in  the  frame  church  on  Fourth  and  Myrtle.  On  Sunday 
before  the  22d  of  September  they  moved  from  the  old  to  the 
new  house  of  worship.  I  suppose  very  few  knew,  or  even  sus- 
pected, who  was  going  to  preach  the  opening  sermon.  The 
Conference  plotted  a  pleasant  surprise  to  the  congregation. 

Sabbath  morning  arrived.  The  church  was  filled  to  its  ut- 
most capacity.  All  were  curious  to  know  who  would  address 
them.  Some  thought  this  preacher,  others  thought  that,  but  all 
expectations  were  soon  put  to  flight  as  the  "  founder  of  the 
Methodist  Church  in  St.  Louis"  arose  and  commenced  the 
service  by  reading  the  hymn: 

And  are  we  yet  alive 
And  see  each  other's  face? 

The  whole  congregation  seemed  to  be  greatly  excited.  Joy 
and  gratitude  so  filled  the  souls  of  the  old  members,  and  of  the 
new  ones  as  well,  that  strangers  did  not  understand  it.  This 
was  a  scene  in  the  early  history  of  Methodism  in  St.  Louis  that 
will  never  be  forgotten.  What  a  striking  contrast  was  this  fine 
superstructure  to  the  little  log  cabin  of  1820!  What  a  contrast 
between  that  vast  audience  and  the  five  persons — two  grown 
and  three  boys — who  first  met  in  the  log  hut!  But  Christ  veri- 
fied his  promise  to  them :  "  Where  two  or  three  are  gathered  to- 
gether in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  their  midst."  Yes,  he  had 
been  in  our  midst.  He  had  prospered  his  work,  and  old  Father 
Walker's  heart  rejoiced  greatly  as  he  gazed  upon  the  vine 
which  he  had  planted  when  but  a  little  thing;  which  had  been 
transplanted  again  and  again,  and  now  bearing  good  fruit  so 
abundantly.  May  the  work  continue  to  go  on!  Of  the  history 
of  the  Church  since  its  establishment  at  Fourth  and  Washing- 
ton Avenue  I  did  not  deem  it  worth  while  to  say  anything,  as  it 
is  so  well  known. 

Yours  respectfully.  ROBERT  D.  SUTTON.* 

Success  is  crowning   the   labors  of  the  M.  E. 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Adovcate,  May  I,  1867. 


238  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

Church,  South,  all  over  the  State,  and  the  king- 
dom of  light  is  advancing  gloriously  against  the 
kingdom  of  darkness.  Glad  tidings  are  coming  to 
us  from  every  direction  and  from  all  parts  of  the 
country  of  the  wonderful  displays  of  divine  power 
in  the  salvation  of  the  people.  Nothing  can  be 
more  interesting  to  the  writer  and  to  the  reader  than 
the  progress  of  the  Church  in  the  great  work  of 
saving  souls.  The  history  along  this  line  is  written 
and  read  with  intense  interest. 

We  find  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of 
September  19,  1866,  a  letter  from  Rev.  W.  L. 
Powell,  giving  an  account  of  the  general  condition 
of  his  work  on  the  New  Madrid  Circuit,  as  fol- 
lows: 

Mr.  Editor:  Perhaps  the  friends  of  the  Church  would  like 
to  hear  what  the  Lord  is  doing  for  us  on  the  New  Madrid  Cir- 
cuit. I  will  first  give  you  a  general  account  of  the  state  of  the 
work  when  I  came  here.  I  found  the  Church  disorganized  to  a 
great  extent,  and  much  discouraged.  Our  people  seemed  to 
think  it  impossible  to  restore  and  build  again  the  waste  places 
of  Zion.  Our  churches  had  been  pillaged  of  every  thing  that 
could  be  carried  awav  or  appropriated,  and  in  manv  instances 
the  buildings  themselves  badly  damaged.  Our  class-books 
were  nearly  all  taken  away  or  destroyed.  It  was  a  long  time 
before  I  could  learn  who  were  the  members  of  the  Church. 

After  having  gone  round  the  circuit  and  learned  its  condi- 
tion, I  organized  classes  at  all  the  appointments.  Soon  the  mem- 
bers and  friends  of  the  Church  came  up  to  the  work  and  re- 
paired most  of  the  churches.  We  then  began  to  feel  a  little 
encouraged.  The  work  advanced  gradually,  with  occasional 
symptoms  of  the  revival  spirit. 

About  six  weeks  ago  Brother  Anthony  and  myself  com- 
menced a  series  of  protracted  meetings  at  various  points  on  the 
circuit.  The  fire  of  primitive  and  spiritual  Christianity  imme- 


1866-67-  *SV-  Louis  Conference.  239 

diately  broke  out  and  spread  through  the  surrounding  country. 
All  of  our  meetings  have  been  successful,  and  some  of  them 
have  been  truly  seasons  of  grace  to  the  Church  and  a  great 
blessing  to  the  country. 

I  will  notice  one  of  these  meetings  more  particularly.  Twelve 
days  ago  we  commenced  a  meeting  in  the  town  of  New  Mad- 
rid. The  good  work  began  immediately.  The  interest  has  in- 
creased daily,  until  all  classes  in  town  and  in  the  surrounding 
neighborhood  have  become  deeply  interested  in  the  cause  of  re- 
ligion. Up  to  this  time  there  have  been  at  this  meeting  thirty- 
five  conversions  and  fifty  accessions  to  the  Church. 

While  writing  this  article  I  will  notice  one  circumstance 
which  took  place  within  the  bounds  of  the  circuit.  Brother 
Jackson  commenced  a  Sunday-school  near  Guyozo,  in  which 
he  was  assisted  by  another  brother.  At  this  school  thev  com- 
menced a  weekly  prayer-meeting.  All  of  the  scholars  and 
many  of  the  people  became  deeply  penitent.  Two  weeks  ago, 
at  one  of  these  prayer-meetings,  thirteen  persons  were  convert- 
ed and  twenty  joined  the  Church.  This  should  encourage  Sab- 
bath-school superintendents  and  teachers. 

The  total  results  of  the  meetings  above  mentioned  are  sixty- 
five  conversions  and  one  hundred  accessions  to  the  Church. 
The  Lord  is  truly  doing  a  great  work  on  the  New  Madrid  Circuit. 

On  September  7,  1866,  Rev.  J.  M.  Proctor 
writes  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  thus: 

My  fourth  quarterly  meeting  for  Perry ville  Circuit  was  held 
at  York  Chapel,  commencing  August  25,  and  continued  five 
days,  resulting  in  sixty-five  accessions  to  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  and  nearly  the  same  number  were  happily  converted  to 
God. 

The  Lord  is  blessing  us  in  a  wonderful  manner.  I  have  re- 
ceived one  hundred  and  seventy-two  persons  in  the  Church  this 
year.  Among  them  are  many  noble  young  men  and  women, 
who  promise  great  usefulness  to  the  Church  of  Christ.  Glory 
be  to  God! 

The  following  interesting  letter  needs  no  expla- 
nation : 


240  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

CALIFORNIA,  MOXITEAU  Co.,  September  6,  1866. 

Dear  Advocate:  Inasmuch  as  no  tidings  are  more  cheering  to 
the  ministers  and  people  of  Christ  than  to  hear  of  the  conver- 
sion of  souls  and  the  building  up  of  Zion,  suffer  me  to  report 
through  you  the  work  of  God  now  going  on  through  this  region 
of  the  country. 

The  Lord  has  been  pleased  to  bestow  his  grace  on  the  people 
at  Bethel,  and  upward  of  a  hundred  souls  who  were  in  spirit- 
ual darkness  are  now  in  the  clear  light  and  enjoying  the  power 
of  God's  saving  grace.  Brother  Hogan,  our  most  faithful 
preacher,  tells  me  that  forty  or  fifty  have  been  added  to  Bethel. 
The  work  has  been  spreading  over  Moniteau,  Cole,  and  Cooper 
Counties,  and  is  yet  in  progress.  Our  fourth  quarterly  meeting 
continued  nine  days,  resulting  in  over  forty  conversions. 

Since  Brother  Hogan  took  charge  last  April  upward  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty  members  have  been  added  to  the  Church 
as  the  result  of  the  revival  which  has  been  going  on  and  is  still 
in  progress.  Hundreds  are  now  in  love  and  fellowship  with  the 
people  of  God.  The  best  members  of  the  community  are  fore- 
most in  this  great  work.  The  prospects  of  our  Church  were 
never  so  good  for  the  last  ten  years  as  at  the  present  time. 
The  ministers  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  help  in  this  glorious 
revival  are:  A.  Thompson,  of  the  Cumberland  Presbvterian 
Church;  John  Maxy  and  J.  Martin,  of  the  Baptist  Church;  our 
beloved  presiding  elder,  J.  Godbey,  and  J.  M.  Hardy;  also  our 
faithful  Hogan  and  your  humble  servant. 

JOHN  MONROE. 

Rev.  A.  M.  Rader  gives  a  very  interesting  ac- 
count of  his  work  on  Arrow  Rock  Circuit,  Saline 
County.  At  different  points  on  his  circuit  he  had 
several  successful  meetings.  In  his  protracted  ef- 
forts he  was  assisted  by  Revs.  Brown  T.  Wallace, 
J.  H.  B.  Wooldridge,  and  W.  M.  Pitts.  He  had 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty  conversions  and 
seventy-six  accessions  to  the  Church  during  the 
last  five  weeks  he  was  on  his  work.  Such  reports 
of  the  power  of  the  gospel  to  save  sinners  as  are 


1866-67-  *$^-  Louis  Conference.  241 

given  this  year  by  the  preachers  are  very  encour- 
aging to  the  people  of  God.  The  cheering  thought 
is  that  these  reports  are  not  few,  but  numerous, 
coming  from  all  quarters  of  the  State.  So  it  seems 
that  the  revival  spirit  pervaded  the  whole  State  in 
1866-67. 

In  the  St.  Louis  Christian  A dvocate  of  this  year 
we  find  a  summary  given  of  the  religious  status  of 
the  Southern  Methodist  Churches  in  the  city  of  St. 
Louis ;  also  an  interesting  account  of  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  Church  Conference  among  them.  Be- 
ing something  new,  it  attracted  no  little  attention, 
and  the  members  attended  its  first  meetings,  if 
from  no  other  motive  than  to  see  what  it  meant. 

The  committee  of  the  General  Conference  who 
recommended  the  plan  for  the  organization  of  the 
Church  Conference  spoke  in  favor  of  it  in  the  fol- 
lowing language :  "  It  is  believed  that  by  this  means 
discipline  will  be  better  maintained,  and  the  mem- 
bership of  the  Church  awakened  to  new  life,  and 
a  new  energy  imparted  to  them,  adding  greatly  to 
the  aggressive  force  of  the  Church." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  committee  enter- 
tained a  correct  view  of  the  subject.  If  rightly  ap- 
preciated and  properly  observed,  it  cannot  do  other- 
wise than  promote  all  the  interests  of  the  Church, 
material  and  spiritual,  temporal  and  eternal;  for  it 
takes  into  consideration  all  these  interests  and  all 
the  institutions  and  enterprises  of  the  Church,  mis- 
sions, Sunday-schools,  education,  etc.  The  intel- 
ligent reader  cannot  fail  to  see  at  once  that  the 
16 


242  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

Church  Conference  is  of  paramount  importance. 
We  cannot  see  how  it  is  possible  for  the  members  to 
attend  its  meetings  regularly  and  transact  all  its  bus- 
iness as  it  should  be  done  without  feeling  a  deep  and 
abiding  interest  in  the  success  and  welfare  of  the 
Church.  It  is  such  a  good  place  for  every  mem- 
ber of  the  Church  to  find  something  to  do  in  the 
Lord's  vineyard.  In  the  multifarious  work  of  the 
Church  certainly  every  person  can  find  some  place 
he  can  fill  successfully.  But,  unappreciated  and 
unobserved,  like  the  neglected  class-meeting, 
prayer-meeting,  and  love-feast,  the  Church  Con- 
ference will  avail  nothing: 

CHURCH  CONFERENCE  AT  CENTENARY  CHURCH — DR.  W.  A. 

SMITH,  PASTOR. 

The  first  feature  that  we  observed  here  indicative  of  an  awak- 
ening to  new  life  in  the  membership  was  the  immense  gathering 
of  the  members.  If  they  were  not  all  present,  perhaps  it  were 
well,  for  certainly  the  lecture*room  would  hold  no  more.  It 
was  full  and  crowded,  and  when  those  hundreds  of  voices  unit- 
ed in  lifting  up  their  hearts — 

In  praise  to  our  redeeming  Lord, 

Who  saves  us  by  his  grace, 
And  bids  us,  each  to  each  restored, 

Together  seek  his  face — 

we  began  to  think  there  was  a  strong  probability  of  a  "force" 
being  awakened  that  had  not  been  anticipated.  We  often  hear 
old-fashioned  Methodism  spoken  of  as  something  that  has  passed 
away  with  those  who  practiced  it,  and  the  fact  of  its  having 
passed  away  seems  much  to  be  regretted.  Well,  we  are  too 
young  to  know  by  experience  much  of  old-fashioned  Method- 
ism ;  but  when  we  all  knelt  in  prayer,  and  the  clear,  loud  voice 
of  the  pastor  led  our  supplicating  hearts  and  appeals  at  the 
throne  of  grace,  and  as  the  warm  desires  of  the  pastor's  full 
heart  came  gushing  up,  and  his  utterance  seemed  the  very  flow 
of  inspiration,  and  "Amen!  amen!"  was  heard  in  all  parts  of  the 


1866-67-  ^-  -Louts  Conference.  243 

house,  we  thought  of  old-fashioned  Methodism  and  said:  "Here 
it  is." 

Then  came  T.  Childs,  the  Secretary,  with  the  volume  of  the 
records  and  the  long  roll  of  membership.  These  records  make 
the  history  of  individual  society,  and  these  will  give  us  authen- 
tic Church  history.  A  good  feature  this  in  Church  economy; 
an  important  office  this  position  of  Secretary,  and  right  faith- 
fully and  efficiently  is  it  filled  by  the  young  brother  who  holds 
it.  What  attention  there  was  to  the  calling  of  the  roll!  Each 
one  seemed  to  listen  and  wait  to  hear  his  own  name,  as  though 
there  might  have  been  a  renewing  and  righting  up  of  the  books, 
and  perhaps  his  name  "  dropped."  But  none  had  been  dropped, 
and  all  who  were  absent  were  accounted  for.  We  began  to  list- 
en for  the  end  of  that  long  roll ;  for  we  had  heard  of  a  falling  off 
in  the  membership  of  the  Southern  Methodist  Churches  in  St. 
Louis,  in  the  days  which  tried  men's  religion  bv  partv  politics, 
and  their  qualifications  for  business  by  their  Church  relations, 
and  we  listened  attentively  to  the  report  on  numbers  as  revealed 
by  the  roll.  It  may  be  possible  that  there  were  some  who  could 
not  stand  the  test  of  persecution ;  for  there  be  some  Christians 
who  do  the  fighting,  and  some  who  do  the  running.  But  we 
cannot  infer  this  from  the  numbers;  for  at  the  close  of  the  Con- 
ference year  1860  the  membership  in  this  Church  numbered  two 
hundred  and  fifty-two,  and  at  the  present  writing  it  is  four  hundred. 

The  "order  of  business,"  as  given  in  the  Discipline,  was 
called  over  by  the  chairman,  and  every  item  of  business  per- 
taining to  the  interest  of  the  Church  was  properly  attended  to. 
And  even  more  than  this,  for  on  this  occasion  an  opportunity 
was  afforded  for  an  evidence  of  the  liberality  in  financial  mat- 
ters for  which  this  Church  is  so  justly  celebrated. 

At  the  last  session  of  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference  the 
bishop  found  the  demand  upon  him  for  preachers  greater  than 
his  supply,  and,  consequently  he  had  to  leave  several  places  "  to 
be  supplied."  Among  these  are  Wesley  Chapel  and  Stoddart's 
Addition.  Rev.  T.  M.  Finney,  presiding  elder  of  this  district, 
by  correspondence  with  the  bishop  and  others,  and  by  much 
fervent  prayer  to  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  for  help,  had 
found  able  and  desirable  men  for  these  vacant  places,  and 
nothing  was  now  lacking  to  place  them  in  regular  working  or- 
der but  the  necessary  means  for  the  support  of  their  pastors.  No 


244  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

Church  in  St.  Louis  suffered  half  as  much  from  the  war  as 
Wesley  Chapel;  but  this  was  not  from  disaffection  in  the  mem- 
bership, nor  from  any  intentional  harm  from  the  military  au- 
thorities, but  from  its  location.  As  it  regards  its  relation  to  the 
city,  its  location — corner  of  Eighth  and  Chouteau  Avenue — is  as 
good  as  any  in  the  city ;  yet  it  was  situated  in  the  very  midst  of 
Schofield  Barracks.  It  was  literally  invested  and  surrounded  bv 
soldiers.  This  was  a  blessing  to  the  soldiers,  for  many  of  them 
worshiped  there,  and  several  of  them  experienced  the  convert- 
ing grace  of  God;  but  the  military  parade  on  Sunday  morning 
had  the  tendency  of  keeping  many  persons  from  church  who 
had  been  in  the  habit  of  attending  there. 

And  now  that  at  least  t-a>o  thousand  dollars  is  necessary  for  the 
support  of  a  pastor  there,  the  presiding  elder,  who  neglects  no 
preacher  but  himself  in  financial  matters,  not  seeing  the  ability 
at  Wesley  Chapel  to  support  a  pastor,  called  on  the  Centenary 
Church  to  assist  in  the  matter.  And  noble  indeed  was  the  re- 
sponse. Dr.  Smith  presented  the  subject  in  plain,  but  very 
meaning,  words,  and  then  in  a  few  strains  of  his  peculiar  and 
soul-stirring  eloquence  spoke  of  sacrifice  and  self-denial  for  the 
salvation  of  souls;  and  then  the  vote  was  taken,  and  the  presid- 
ing elder  was  authorized  to  look  to  them  for  means  to  support 
Methodism  at  Wesley  Chapel  until  it  is  able  to  take  its  place 
again  with  its  sister  Churches  as  self-sustaining.  -And  while  this 
was  being  done  at  Centenary  an  equally  generous  and  noble 
work  was  going  on  at  First  Church  for  another  needy  Church. 
But  of  this  we  will  speak  hereafter. 

The  most  interesting  feature  just  now  at  Centenary  is  the  re- 
vival spirit  that  is  manifested,  and  the  daily  increase  in  religious 
activity.  LOCAL. 

The  foregoing  is  certainly  a  very  interesting  pres- 
entation of  the  Centenary  Church ;  and  as  we  feel 
satisfied  that  the  reader  would  like  to  hear  from 
the  other  Churches  in  the  city  by  the  same  writer, 
we  will  give  him  that  pleasure. 
CHURCH  CONFERENCE,  FIRST  CHURCH — DR.  J.  BOYLE,  PASTOR. 

On  the  first  Sabbath  of  the  month  we  dropped  in  on  Brother 
Boyle  to  observe  the  working  of  the  nc-M feature  in  Methodist 


1866-67-  *S^'  -Louis  Conference.  245 

econom  v  in  the  Church  of  which  he  has  charge.  And  here,  in- 
deed, were  seen  the  promised  "  new  life,  new  energy,  and  in- 
creased aggressive  force  of  the  Church"  in  the  immense  gather- 
ing of  the  membership.  And  none  were  idle  spectators ;  none 
seemed  to  have  come  simply  as  lookers-on ;  but  all,  every  one, 
of  the  vast  congregation  of  the  Church  appeared  to  feel  the 
burden  of  souls.  It  is  the  Christian's  privilege  not  only  to  be 
alirc,  but  to  be  lively;  and  here  they  seem  to  appreciate  this 
truth,  and  to  practice  it  too,  for  here  is  Christianity  in  earnest. 
Talk  of  old-fashioned  Methodism;  here  it  is,  not  in  some  of  the 
modern  stvle  of  fixtures,  but  around  her  altars,  where  mourners 
are  called,  and  fervent,  warm,  heart-feeling,  heart-gushing 
prayers  are  made,  and  hearty  amens  are  heard  responding;  and 
better  than  all,  souls  are  converted.  Now  if  this  is  not  old-fash- 
ioned Methodism,  pray  tell  us  where  will  you  find  it?  It  is,  in 
fact,  the  Methodism  that  spreads  scriptural  holiness  over  these 
lands — the  Methodism  of  Wesley,  by  which  the  Church  more 
than  a  century  ago  was  awakened  to  a  sense  of  its  fallen  condi- 
tion, and  restored  to  righteousness  and  usefulness. 

The  reports  of  the  different  departments  of  this  Church — that 
is,  pastor's,  class-leader's,  Sunday-school  superintendent's,  stew- 
ards', etc. — were  listened  to  with  an  attention  that  manifested 
great  interest  in  these  matters.  In  all  these  departments  of  the 
Church  all  was  life  and  activity.  But  the  most  interesting  feat- 
ture  of  this  meeting,  and  that  which  stamped  the  labors  of  the 
pastor  and  the  faith  and  prayers  of  the  membership  with  the 
seal  of  the  divine  approbation,  was  the  large  number  who  pre- 
sented themselves  at  the  altar  for  membership,  as  the  fruits  of 
the  past  month.  Thirty-one  responded  to  the  call,  and  circled 
around  the  pastor  to  take  upon  themselves  the  vows  of  their 
holy  espousals  to  Christ. 

During  the  administration  of  the  ordinance  of  baptism  the 
solemn  silence  of  the  congregation  was  of  that  spiritual  gather- 
ing together  of  all  hearts  in  one  prayer,  that  only  the  moistened 
eye  spoke  as  it  went  up  to  God.  And  when  the  fervent  voice  of 
the  pastor,  in  all  the  earnestness  of  his  burdened  heart  with 
immortal  souls,  was  heard  to  pray,  "  Grant  that  they  may  have 
strength  and  power  to  have  victory  and  triumph  against  •  the 
devil,  the  world,  and  the  flesh,'"  an  involuntary  "Amen!" 
seemed  to  come  from  the  entire  congregation. 


246  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

On  the  reception  of  these  applicants  into  the  Church,  when, 
in  his  warm  and  fervent  manner,  Dr.  Doyle  put  the  searching 
question,  "  Wilt  thou,  then,  obediently  keep  God's  holy  will 
and  commandments,  and  walk  in  the  same  all  the  days  of  thy 
life?"  there  went  up  a  united  prayer  of  many  voices  for  grace 
to  enable  them  "  so  to  do."  But  it  was  in  the  prayer  consecrat- 
ing these  souls  to  God,  and  asking  in  the  name  of  the  Redeem- 
er that  they  might  endure  patiently  to  the  end,  that  all  their 
hearts  seemed  to  melt  into  one  petition  that  the  whole  Church 
might  be  filled  with  heaven,  and  baptized  with  power  from  on 
high. 

The  First  Church  in  St.  Louis  was  enjoying  a 
remarkable  visitation  of  the  divine  presence  and 
power  at  the  time  of  this  writing.  The  Church  was 
lifted  to  a  high  plane  of  Christian  experience,  and 
was  characterized  by  great  spirituality.  For  a 
long  time  they  realized  that  "the  tabernacle  of 
God  is  with  men."  It  was  their  privilege  to  have 
a  perpetual  revival — sinners  converted  every  day 
at  their  daily  prayer-meeting,  which  was  continued 
indefinitely.  It  was  in  these  meetings  that  Sister 
Boyle,  that  consecrated  woman  of  God,  accom- 
plished an  incalculable  amount  of  good.  Bright 
will  be  her  crown,  and  hundreds  will  rise  up  in 
that  day  and  pronounce  her  blessed.  Dr.  Doyle 
and  his  wife  will  no  doubt  occupy  high  seats  in 
heaven,  near  by  the  throne  of  God. 

An  account  of  St.  Paul's  Church  will  now  claim 
the  attention  of  the  reader: 

CHURCH  CONFERENCE,  ST.  PAUL'S — REV.  W.  M.  PROTTSMAN, 

PASTOR. 

In  the  operation  of  the  "  new  feature  "  in  Methodist  economy 
in  this  Church  we  observed  on  the  part  of  the  pastor  a  close 
attention  to  the  "  observance  of  every  point,  great  or  small,  in 


1866-67-  *S^«  Louis  Conference.  247 

the  Methodist  Discipline ; "  and  the  strict  observance  of  the  or- 
der of  business  by  the  pastor  seemed  to  be  nothing  new  to  the 
membership,  and  altogether  in  accordance  with  their  views  of 
Methodist  discipline.  The  reports  from  the  several  departments 
of  the  work  were  listened  to  with  interest,  and  indicated  a  de- 
termination on  the  part  of  the  membership  to  bring  this  old 
"Mound  Charge"  back  again  to  its  former  prosperity. 

At  the  close  of  the  last  Conference  year  Brother  Prottsman 
recommended  the  sale  of  Mound  Church,  and  the  building  of 
another  and  better  house  of  worship  in  a  more  eligible  location. 
This  recommendation  was  very  heartily  concurred  in  by  the  en- 
tire membership.  Accordingly  the  old  church  was  sold  for 
$6,500,  and  a  lot  purchased  on  Jackson  Square,  Twelfth  and 
North  Market  Streets.  This  lot  is  certainly  suitaole  for  Church 
purposes,  and  is  the  most  desirable  in  North  St.  Louis. 

It  is  the  intention  of  the  congregation  to  build  on  this  lot 
during  the  present  year  (if  at  all  practicable)  a  substantial  but 
plain  church,  with  ample  capacity  to  meet  the  wants  of  this  part 
of  the  city. 

At  present  this  congregation  worships  in  a  comfortable  and 
well  -  finished  hall  on  the  north  -  east  corner  of  Jefferson  and 
Fourteenth  Streets. 

There  are  members  in  this  charge  who  have  the  ring  of  sound 
metal — members  who  have  been  tried  bv  the  allurements  of  the 
world,  under  the  demoralizing  influence  of  the  war,  when  pe- 
cuniary interest  became  the  line  of  Church  latitude;  and  who 
have  been  tried  by  the  fires  of  persecution  also;  and  yet  were 
ever  true  to  the  Church. 

Such  a  people  must  and  will  prosper;  and  they  are  every  day 
increasing  in  spirituality  and  numbers.  We  pray  that  their 
new  church-edifice  may  soon  be  finished,  and  the  labors  of  their 
worthv  pastor  be  abundantly  blessed. 

The  reader's  attention  is  directed  in  the  next 
place  to  the  notice  given  of  one  of  the  Southern 
Methodist  Churches  in  another  part  of  the  city: 

WESLEY  CHAPEL. — REV.  S.  S.  BRYANT,  PASTOR. 
Owing  to  a  want  of  supply  of  preachers  at  the  last  session  of 
the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference,  Wesley  Chapel  was  left  to  be 


248  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

supplied.  As  long  as  it  was  at  all  practicable  for  him  to  do  so, 
Brother  Prottsman  supplied  the  pulpit  here  on  Sunday  nights, 
and  since  Dr.  Smith's  arrival  at  Centenary  he  has  preached 
regularly  here  on  Sabbath  afternoons.  The  Sunday-school, 
under  the  superintending  care  of  that  faithful  young  man, 
Samuel  Gaddis,  has  been  kept  in  good  working  order,  and  al- 
though without  a  pastor,  is  in  a  prosperous  condition. 

Rev.  S.  S.  Bryant,  late  of  Virginia,  has  been  sent  on  by  Bish- 
op Doggett  to  take  charge  of  this  Church.  He  has  met  with  a 
very  welcome  reception,  and  has  entered  vipon  his  duties  cheer- 
fully, prayerfully,  and  hopefully.  He  and  the  members  of  his 
charge  are  expecting  much  fruit  unto  the  Lord  from  their  la- 
bors, and  the  other  Churches  in  the  city  are  praying  for  their 
success. 

Wesley  Chapel  needed  at  this  time  such  a  man  and  preacher 
as  Brother  Bryant.  Its  location,  on  Chouteau  Avenue  and 
Eighth  Street,  the  center  of  a  most  respectable  community, 
gave  it  prominence  as  a  place  where  there  should  be  a  large 
congregation.  Such  was  the  case  in  years  past;  but  an  army  of 
soldiers  came  and  made  their  barracks  around  this  church,  and 
then  many  of  the  congregation  sought  other  houses  of  worship; 
but  a  few  faithful  ones  stood  by  the  Church  in  all  her  vicissi- 
tudes, and  now  they  rejoice  in  the  prospect  of  great  future 
prosperity. 

"  Local  "  has,  in  the  opinion  of  this  writer,  giv- 
en a  very  interesting  survey  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  in  St.  Louis  at  the  time  of  his  writing.  It 
will  no  doubt  be  read  with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure, 
at  least  by  those  immediately  interested.  Indeed, 
all  the  Methodists  in  Missouri  feel  an  anxious  con- 
cern about  the  success  of  Methodism  in  St.  Louis; 
for  its  influence  must  be  felt  more  or  less  through- 
out the  State.  Yes,  St.  Louis  being  the  metropo- 
lis should  give  type  and  tone  to  the  Methodism  of 
Missouri. 

Rev.  D.  J.  Marquis  gives  in  the  St.  Louis  Chris- 


1866-67.  "S*^  Louis  Conference.  249 

tian  Advocate  of  September  26,  1866,  a  very  en- 
couraging account  of  his  work  in  Jefferson,  Ste. 
Genevieve,  and  St.  Francois  Counties — a  number 
of  revivals  at  different  points  on  his  circuit.  He 
was  assisted  in  his  special  meetings  by  Rev.  John 
C.  Williams  and  Dr.  T.  M.  Finney,  the  presiding 
elder.  The  quickening  and  purifying  grace  of 
Christ  was  experienced  in  the  Church,  reclaiming 
backsliders  and  reviving  the  people  of  God ;  while 
the  convicting  and  converting  power  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  was  manifested  among  sinners.  At  the  time 
of  his  writing  there  had  been  seventy-five  conver- 
sions, among  whom  were  a  number  of  very  promis- 
ing young  men.  It  seems  that  there  was  a  for- 
ward movement  all  along  the  line  of  his  work. 
Also  a  very  interesting  report  given  by  Rev.  S.  M. 
Winton  of  his  work  on  the  Springfield  Circuit. 
He  says:  "The  meeting  at  Ross's  Chapel  con- 
tinued two  weeks  with  glorious  success:  about 
fifty  conversions  and  thirty-two  accessions  to  the 
Church,  and  others  will  join  at  other  places,  so 
that  the  Church  will  gain  about  fifty  members. 
The  conversions  were  clear  and  powerful.  Quite 
a  number  of  young  men  of  great  promise  were 
brought  into  the  Church.  The  old  members  were 
thoroughly  revived."  This  is  only  a  report  of  one 
of  his  meetings,  while  he  speaks  of  others  in  very 
encouraging  language. 

The  Lord  is  graciously  and  extensively  blessing 
the  labors  of  his  servants,  and  we  record  with  a 
great  deal  of  pleasure  the  wonderful  displays  of 


250  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

divine  power  in  the  salvation  of  so  many  precious 
souls.  The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  is  certainly 
coming  up  out  of  the  wilderness  of  persecution  as 
clear  "as  the  sun,  as  fair  as  the  moon,  and  terri- 
ble as  an  army  with  banners"  against  all  sin  and 
unrighteousness.  She  is  nobly  fulfilling  her  mis- 
sion of  spreading  holiness  over  all  these  ends  of 
the  earth. 

Rev.  G.  W.  Horn,  pastor  of  the  Church  at  Jef- 
ferson City,  writes  of  his  charge  in  the  St.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate  of  February  6,  1867,  in  the 
following  language : 

News  from  the  Churches  is  always  welcome  and  read  with 
interest  by  the  lovers  of  Zion.  As  others  from  all  quarters  are 
giving  in  their  reports,  I  also  will  add  mine — not  as  good  as  some 
others,  but  good  after  its  kind. 

When  I  came  to  this  charge  I  found  the  Church  in  a  low  and 
lowly  state.  There  had  been  no  regular  pastor  here  for  five 
years  past,  and  of  course  the  congregation  had  well-nigh  gone 
down.  A  few  had  remained  firm,  watchful,  and  hopeful,  but 
many  had  fallen  off  by  death,  removal,  and  otherwise,  and  only 
twenty-eight  members  could  be  found.  Brother  Long,  under 
manv  difficulties,  had  striven  to  keep  up  the  Sunday-school  of 
ten  or  fifteen  scholars. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  the  Church  here  when  I  commenced 
four  years  ago.  In  addition  to  this,  the  house  of  worship  was 
much  dilapidated,  having  been  used  and  abused  by  the  soldiery. 
We  went  to  work,  however,  planning,  talking,  preaching,  pray- 
ing, "  exhorting,  reproving,  rebuking,"  etc.  All  worked  to- 
gether; for,  be  it  said,  we  have  some  willing  hands  here,  espe- 
cially among  the  ladies.  The  stewards  made  a  very  liberal 
allowance  for  the  pastor,  and  he,  grateful,  felt  at  least  no  less 
willing  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  benefit  them. 

The  result  of  the  work  thus  far  may  be  expressed  about  thus: 
A  good  congregation,  a  promising  Sabbath-school,  and  a  thor- 
oughly renovated  house,  with  a  prospect  of  precious  spiritual 


1866-67.  »SV.  Louis  Conference.  251 

achievements.  We  have  expended  over  four  hundred  dollars 
in  repairs  and  improvements  on  the  house.  "  A  great  door  and 
effectual  is  opened  unto  us,"  and  we  are  waiting  before  the 
Lord  for  a  "  time  of  refreshing  from  his  presence." 

Rev.  J.  A.  Murphy,  presiding  elder  of  the  Boon- 
ville  District,  thus  writes  in  the  St.  JLouis  Chris- 
tian Advocate  of  January  30: 

The  interests  of  Christianity  are  common  interests.  Her 
successes  or  reverses,  her  joys  or  her  sorrows  need  only  to  be 
made  known  to  be  shared  by  her  numerous  votaries.  If  the 
conversion  of  a  single  soul  is  an  event  that  stirs  anew  the  joy 
of  heaven,  it  remains  among  Christians  a  common  privilege  to 
send  up  a  jubilant  shout  "  to  him  that  cometh  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord,"  when  Zion's  ark  is  advancing;  or  to  hang  their 
harps  upon  the  willows  in  the  days  of  her  calamity,  praying: 
"  Turn  again  our  captivity,  O  Lord,  as  the  streams  in  the^  south." 

Impressed  with  this  view,  I  count  myself  happy  to  sketch, 
in  short,  a  field  of  extensive  bounds,  "  white  already  to  the 
harvest.  Of  the  fourteen  preachers  employed  in  the  district 
all  abound  in  the  choice  gift  of  Providence — health — except 
Brothers  J.  Godbey  and  S..  S.  Colburn,  both  of  whom  do  what 
they  can  in  the  service  of  the  Church.  According  to  the  un- 
derstanding of  Bishop  Doggett,  Brother  W.  M.  Pitts  will  be 
fully  given  to  his  work  by  the  opening  of  spring.  He  has  al- 
ready begun  the  labor  of  reorganizing  the  Church  in  the  dev- 
astated region.  He  finds  that  our  people,  with  an  astonishing 
unanimity  and  true  fidelity,  have  adhered  to  our  Church, 
though  it  has  cost  them  much  suffering  and  loss.  The  first 
quarter  has  closed  showing  an  increase  in  membership,  some 
gracious  revival  interest,  and  indications  of  coming  good. 

From  the  same  source  we  get  important  informa- 
tion respecting  the  condition  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  in  the  south-western  part  of  this  State,  by  a 
local  preacher  as  follows: 

I  have  been  looking  and  waiting  ever  since  Conference  for  a 
preacher  to  make  his  appearance,  but  so  far  in  vain.  I  would 
like  to  know  why  the  presiding  elder  and  circuit  preacher  ap- 


252  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

pointed  here  have  not  come  on.  Are  they  coming  at  all  ?  If 
so,  when  ?  If  not,  why  ?  I  have  been  laboring  incessantly  for 
twelve  months  past  to  hold  the  influence  here  for  Southern 
Methodism.  I  shall  not  attempt  to  describe  the  toil  and  priva- 
tion which  I  have  undergone,  and  the  difficulties  I  have  en- 
countered— thankful  that  I  have  succeeded  so  far.  I  have  un- 
der my  care  here,  at  this  time,  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  liv- 
ing Southern  Methodists,  while  our  Northern  brethren  have 
in  the  same  bounds  five  or  six  preachers  and  less  than  fifty 
members.  Our  Church  is  now  twice  as  strong  here  as  ever 
before,  and,  should  I  attend  every  call,  I  would  have  to  preach 
twice  every  day,  and  then  could  not  do  it.  Meanwhile,  a  school 
to  attend  to  of  seventy-five  scholars;  so  you  may  reasonably 
conclude  that  I  do  not  eat  much  idle  bread.  If  I  were  so  situ- 
ated that  I  could  spend  my  whole  time  in  preaching,  I  could, 
by  divine  help,  revolutionize  this  south-  western  country.  But  the 
people  are  generally  poor,  were  broken  up  during  the  war,  are 
hard  run  to  make  a  living,  and  are  not  able  to  pay  much  to 
support  a  minister,  and  I  have  to  meet  the  expenses  of  my  fam- 
ily by  some  other  means.  Hence  I  can  only  devote  a  small 
portion  of  my  time  to  the  work.  No  man  is,  perhaps,  more  de- 
voted to  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  than  myself,  and  I  would 
be  more  than  willing  to  sacrifice  luxury  and  ease  for  her  interests. 
But  the  facts  are  before  you.  Cannot  something  be  done  to 
meet  the  wants  of  our  Church  in  this  part  of  the  State  ?  There 
is  certainly  a  wide  and  open  field  before  us,  which  should  be 
entered  and  occupied  at  the  earliest  period  practicable.  All 
honor  to  the  Church-members  who  remained  steadfast  amid  the 
terrible  trials  through  which  they  had  to  pass! 

Rev.  W.  S.  Woodard,  presiding  elder  of  Cape 
Girardeau  District,  gives  the  following  interesting 
account  of  their  District  Conference :  "  The  meet- 
ing was  a  splendid  success.  We  had  a  very 
good  attendance;  eight  circuits  were  represented. 
Bishop  Doggett  presided  over  our  deliberations 
with  great  profit  to  the  Conference.  He  preached 
Sabbath  morning  and  evening  to  large  and  delight- 


1866-67-  *S^-  Louis  Conference. .  253 

ed  audiences.  The  Holy  Spirit  attended  the  word. 
Sinners  were  convicted  and  penitents  were  con- 
verted, while  Christians  felt  an  unusual  glow  of 
divine  love.  The  reports  of  the  preachers  show  a 
majority  of  the  circuits  to  be  in  a  prosperous  con- 
dition. The  future  is  promising  and  hopeful." 


CHAPTER  XL 
MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

The  Fiftieth  Annual  Session  of  the  Missouri  Conference — 
Statistical  Business — The  Blessings  of  Peace  in  Contrast 
with  the  Evils  of  War — United  as  One  People,  the  United 
States  the  Greatest  Nation  on  Earth — Would  Give  a  High 
Christian  Civilization  to  the  World — Is  not  That  the  Divine 
Purpose? — Rev.  J.  A.  Mumpower  Speaks  of  His  Work — Also 
Rev.  Thos.  Hurst  and  Rev.  W.  E.  Dockery — His  Usefulness 
and  Persecution — Revival  Notices  by  Other  Preachers — 
Revival  in  a  Sunday-school — Rev.  Jesse  Bird's  Work- 
Church  at  Glasgow — Work  of  Rev.  A.  Munroe,  Presiding 
Elder  of  Fayette  District — Chillicothe  Station,  Rev.  S.  W. 
Cope,  Pastor — Revival  Notice  by  Rev.  John  D.  Vincil— 
Work  on  St.  Joseph  District  by  Rev.  W.  M.  Rush,  Presiding 
Elder — Trials  of  Rev.  Jesse  Faubion  during  the  Internecine 
War — Also  of  Rev.  S.  J.  Burgin — Revivals  Reported  from 
All  Parts  of  the  Conference — Also  a  Revival  of  Building 
Many  Houses  of  Worship  in  Different  Portions  of  the 
Country. 

WE  have  been  giving  the  minute  business  of 
the  Conferences  to  some  extent  because  it 
perpetuates  the  names  of  the  preachers  who  are 
spending  and  who  have  spent  their  useful  lives  in 
the  service  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  and  to 
whom  the  Church  owes  her  great  success  and 
prosperity  under  the  blessing  of  heaven.  It  will 
be  very  gratifying  to  their  relatives  and  friends, 
after  these  faithful,  consecrated  ministers  shall 
have  gone  to  their  future  reward  of  mansions  in 
heaven,  to  find  their  names  in  the  history  of  the 
(254) 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  255 

Church — names  that  should  be  embalmed  in  our 
memory  and  transmitted  from  generation  to  gen- 
eration as  the  ages  roll  on. 

The  fiftieth  annual  session  of  the  Missouri  Con- 
ference was  opened  by  Bishop  Doggett  September 
5th,  1866,  John  D.  Vincil  acting  as  Secretary  by 
the  appointment  of  the  Conference. 

H.  W.  James  was  admitted  on  trial,  and  J.  A. 
Mumpower,  T.  Penn,  J.  Metcalf,  andB.  F.  Zum- 
walt  remained  on  trial.  Joseph  King  was  admit- 
ted into  full  connection,  and  Jesse  Bird,  H.  A. 
Davis,  and  M.  Mcllhany  were  re-admitted.  The 
traveling  preachers,  Joseph  King  and  J.  Smith, 
were  elected  and  ordained  deacons;  also  the  fol- 
lowing local  preachers:  J.  Rickman,  T.  R.  Hedg- 
peth,  and  M.  Mcllhany.  The  traveling  preachers 
who  were  elected  and  ordained  were:  S.  J.  Huf- 
faker,  J.  O.  Swinney,  J.  Smith,  S.  Alexander,  J. 
W.  Adkisson,  S.  J.  Catlin,  and  J.  O.  Foresman. 
Also  the  following  local  preachers :  J.  Craft,  L.  S. 
Cornell,  G.  S.  Huffaker,  and  L.  W.  Cooper.  R. 
H.  Jordan  was  supernumerary,  and  M.  L.  Eads, 
D.  C.  Blackwell,  and  Tyson  Dines  were  super- 
annuated. Reported  at  the  Conference  11,551 
white  members,  346  colored,  57  Indian,  and  82 
local  preachers. 

As  we  leave  the  war  behind  us  and  as  we  ad- 
vance in  the  history  of  "Methodism  in  Missouri  " 
the  glimmering  light  which  has  cheered  us  on 
through  the  darkness  of  the  past  grows  brighter 
and  brighter  and  the  horizon  is  becoming  lumi- 


256  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

nous  with  the  golden  beams  of  the  rising  Sun  of 
Peace. 

Yes,  the  war  cloud  has  risen,  lifted,  and  is  gone, 
and  the  clear,  calm,  blue  sky  is  smiling  upon  the 
earth.  The  gentle,  balmy  zephyrs  are  wafting 
sweet  peace  on  their  soft  wings,  to  every  heart 
and  home  in  the  land.  How  much  better  is  peace 
than  war,  is  harmony  than  strife,  is  love  than  hate, 
is  happiness  than  misery,  is  union  than  division ! 
Could  we  as  a  nation  but  rise  above  all  sectionalism 
and  partyism,  and  be  governed  by  the  advice  of 
the  immortal  Webster,  that  noble  patriot  and  great 
statesman,  who  said,  "Know  no  east,  no  west,  no 
north,  no  south,  but  be  one,"  what  a  mighty  na- 
tion would  the  American  people  become — a  model 
nation  of  virtue,  intelligence,  and  Christian  civiliza- 
tion, whose  influence  and  power  would  be  known 
and  felt  all  over  the  world ! 

It  is  clear  to  the  mind  of  this  writer  that  God 
designed  to  make  our  nation  his  own  peculiar  peo- 
ple for  the  evangelization  and  Christianization  of 
all  the  heathen  nations  of  the  earth.  He  has  given 
them  the  finest  country  in  the  world,  the  best  civil 
government  in  the  world,  founded  on  the  solid 
principles  of  the  Bible.  In  its  organic  structure 
the  supreme  claims  of  God  and  the  equitable  rights 
of  man  are  its  chief  corner-stones.  He  has  made 
them  the  greatest  nation  on  earth  —  exalted  to 
heaven  in  point  of  privileges  and  blessings.  In  all 
these  things  the  purpose  of  God  is  manifestly  in- 
dicated. But  like  the  Israelites  or  Jewish  nation, 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  257 

we  may  frustrate  that  purpose.  Notice  the  paral- 
lelism. The  Jews  had  the  choice  country  of  the 
old  world,  the  best  government  in  the  world,  were 
the  greatest  people  in  the  world  when  loyal  to  their 
divine  government,  were  raised  to  heaven  in  priv- 
ileges and  blessings.  The  Bible  teaches  that  it 
was  the  design  of  God  to  save  the  world  through 
the  Jewish  nation,  his  own  chosen  people.  But  in 
this  he  was  defeated  by  their  willful  rebellion  and 
stubborn  wickedness,  culminating  in  the  rejection 
and  crucifixion  of  the  Son  of  God.  Let  us  not 
follow  their  example  of  disobedience  and  rebellion 
against  the  authority  and  righteous  government  of 
Heaven. 

The  following  is  from  the  pen  of  Rev.  J.  A. 
Mumpower  to  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of 
January,  1867: 

Having  been  appointed  to  Bucklin  Circuit,  Linn  County,  I 
came  on  to  my  work  as  soon  as  my  health  would  permit,  and 
found  it  at  some  points  in  a  tolerably  good  condition,  but  at 
others  in  a  very  deplorable  state ;  the  membership  scattered  and 
almost  broken  up  during  the  war,  which  worked  like  some  foul 
fiend  against  the  interests  of  Southern  Methodism. 

Viewing  the  wreck,  I  went  to  work  collecting  the  fragments 
together,  and  by  the  blessing  of  God  have  seen  the  good  work 
progress.  I  appointed  a  protracted  meeting  to  commence  at  Yel- 
low Creek  Church  December  29,  which  lasted  fourteen  days, 
and  resulted  in  nineteen  conversions  and  eleven  accessions  to  the 
Church,  and  the  membership  greatly  revived. 

I  commenced  a  meeting  at  King's  School-house  on  the  I2th 
of  January,  which  lasted  one  week,  resulting  in  eighteen  acces- 
sions to  the  Church  and  the  same  number  of  conversions. 

Since  my  arrival  on  the  work  I  have  taken  into  the  Church 
about  sixty  persons,  forty  of  whom  are  new  converts.  So  you 
see  that  Southern  Methodism  is  not  dead  here  yet. 

17 


258  M-clhodtsm  'in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

The  interest  manifested  by  the  people  for  a  pure  gospel  is 
such  that  we  are  forced  to  say :  "  The  harvest  is  great,  but  the 
laborers  are  few."  O  that  God  would  send  laborers  :nto  the 
field,  such  as  will  glory  in  nothing  but  the  cross. 

Rev.  Thomas  Hurst  reports  a  good  work  on  the 
Maysville  Circuit.  He  says:  "  We  protracted  our 
first  quarterly  meeting  with  good  results.  I  then 
commenced  a  protracted  meeting  at  the  Parrott 
school-house,  which  was  continued  through  the 
holidays.  There  were  seventy-two  accessions  to 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  I  am  glad  to  say  that 
nearly  all  who  joined  the  Church  were  converted. 
I  have  received  one  hundred  and  twenty  persons 
into  the  Church  since  October." 
,  Rev.  W.  E.  Dockery  speaks  thus  of  his  district: 
"  I  make  my  first  report  of  Chillicothe  District.  I 
was  able  to  attend  all  my  quarterly  meetings.  We 
have  had  about  fifty  additions  to  the  Church. 
The  quarterage  is  almost  double  what  it  was  on 
my  first  round  last  year.  I  do  not  think  the  Church 
will  starve  her  preachers  in  the  bounds  of  the 
Chillicothe  District  this  year.  Our  new  churches 
at  Richmond  and  Chillicothe  are  finished,  and  but 
little  debt  on  either.  The  preachers  are  well  and 
at  their  work,  except  Brother  Proctor.  His  health 
having  failed,  I  employed  Brother  T.  B.  King  to 
take  charge  of  the  work.  He  is  the  son  of  Gov- 
ernor King." 

It  is  very  remarkable  how  rapidly  and  extensive- 
ly the  revival  spirit  in  the  M.  E.  Church,  South, 
spread  over  the  State  of  Missouri  so  soon  after  the 
war.  The  same  spirit  was  in  the  Church  all  the 


i866-6f.  Missouri  Conference.  259 

time,  and  the  cessation  of  hostilities  only  gave  it 
an  opportunity  to  manifest  itself. 

REV.  WILLIS  E.  DOCKERY. 

How  dry,  hpw  dull  and  tame  would  the  annual 
session  of  the  Missouri  Conference  be  without  the 
presence  of  the  good-humored,  hilarious,  laughter- 
making,  soul-exhilarating,  veritable  Dockery! 
When  the  proceedings  of  the  session  are  becoming 
prosy  and  monotonous  let  Brother  Dockery  arise 
to  his  feet  and  address  the  Chair,  and  instantly  the 
whole  Conference  realizes  the  inspiration  of  new 
life,  and  business  moves  forward  more  briskly  and 
with  greater  interest.  He  is  indeed  the  life  of  the 
Conference,  and  his  absence  would  be  sadly  felt 
by  all  the  preachers.  He  was  for  a  long  time  the 
leading  chorister  of  the  Conference,  and  is  yet  to 
a  considerable  extent.  Whenever  his  clear,  sono- 
rous voice  starts  out  upon  one  of  Zion's  favorite 
hymns,  with  the  whole  Conference  joining  in  the 
song,  you  may  expect  to  hear  soul-enrapturing 
music  that  will  lift  you  above  the  sublunary  cares 
of  this  fading,  dying  world  into  the  blissful  scenes 
of  paradise. 

Not  only  is  he  useful  in  these  directions,  but  he 
is  competent  to  perform  successfully  any  work  the 
Conference  may  think  proper  to  give  him  on  the 
circuit,  in  the  station,  or  on  the  district,  all  of  which 
places  he  has  filled  in  a  manner  that  reflects  credit 
upon  him.  This  present  writer  cannot  call  to  mind 
any  member  of  the  Missouri  Conference  who  has 


260  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

done  more  for  Southern  Methodism  in  North-west 
Missouri  than  Willis  E.  Dockery.  Yet  he  had  his 
trials  during  the  war  in  common  with  other  South- 
ern Methodist  preachers,  as  the  reader  may  see  in 
the  following  statement  given  by  another: 

This  faithful  servant  of  God  and  prominent  member  of  the 
Missouri  Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South,  did  not  escape  the 
hand  of  the  persecutors,  lie  was  traveling  the  Chillicothe 
District,  and  was  in  various  places  in  his  district  threatened 
with  mob  violence  by  the  self-constituted  executors  of  the  law. 
But  he  faltered  not  nor  hesitated  in  the  presence  of  duty  or 
danger.  In  the  fall  of  1866  he  was  indicted  by  the  grand  jury 
for  Lewis  County  and  arrested  by  James  A.  Neal,  sheriff  of  the 
countv,  and  required  to  give  bond  in  the  sum  of  $1,000  for  his  ap- 
pearance at  court.  At  the  following  spring  term  of  the  same 
court  he  was  again  indicted.  Judge  R.  E.  Debolt  presided  in  the 
court,  and  continued  the  cases  from  time  to  time  until  the  decis- 
ion of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,  when  they  were  dis- 
missed.* 

Rev.  Jesse  Sutton  gives  a  brief  report  of  a  good 
meeting  at  Wesley  Chapel,  Lincoln  County,  as 
follows:  "  My  first  quarterly  meeting  was  held  at 
Wesley  Chapel  October  27th.  Brother  Horace 
Brown,  the  presiding  elder,  was  with  us,  and 
preached  in  his  usual  powerful  and  convincing 
manner  for  three  days,  and  then  had  to  leave  for 
other  work.  But  we  determined  to  protract  the 
meeting.  It  was  continued  two  weeks,  the  result 
of  which  was  fifty-eight  accessions  to  the  Church 
and  about  forty- five  conversions,  and  the  mem- 
bership greatly  revived.  During  the  meeting  I 
baptized  thirty-eight  adults  and  two  infants." 

*  Dr.  Leftwich's  book. 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference.  261 

In  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of  Novem- 
ber 2ist  the  Rev.  George  Fenton,  of  the  New 
Bloomfield  Circuit,  Callaway  County,  writes  in  the 
following  manner:  "We  are  receiving  some  gra- 
cious blessings  on  the  New  Bloomfield  Circuit.  At 
the  fourth  quarterly  meeting  of  last  Conference 
year,  held  at  Shiloh  in  August,  we  had  a  gracious 
revival,  resulting  in  a  number  of  conversions  and 
thirteen  additions  to  the  Church.  We  also  held  a 
protracted  meeting  at  Rocky  Branch,  embracing 
the  fifth  Sabbath  in  September,  resulting  in  many 
happy  conversions  and  seventeen  additions  to  the 
Church.  We  are  now  busy  repairing  our  house  of 
worship,  and  we  are  still  looking  forward  for 
greater  displays  of  God's  saving  power." 

The  following  interesting  statement  is  found  in 
the  Advocate  of  November  14: 

At  what  is  known  as  "  Spring  Garden  School-house,"  about 
two  miles  from  St.  Joseph,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Col.  Thomas 
Ashton's,  a  few  friends  started  a  Sabbath-school  last  spring.  I 
was  invited  to  visit  them  occasionally  and  encourage  the  enter- 
prise. I  did  so,  both  with  pleasure  and  profit.  The  people 
seemed  to  give  such  good  attention  to  the  word  preached  that 
encouragement  was  given  to  a  little  extra  effort  which  was 
made,  and  I  have  just  suspended  a  meeting  of  ten  nights'  con- 
tinuance, which  resulted  in  thirty-seven  accessions  to  the 
Church,  and  about  forty-five  professing  conversion. 

They  were  organized  into  a  soicety,  with  a  class-leader  and 
a  steward,  and  attached  to  the  St.  Joseph  Station.  The  meeting 
suspended  for  the  time,  that  the  religious  interest  might  be 
transferred  to  an  adjacent  neighborhood  where  Brother  Barrett 
is  holding  a  meeting.  He  has  just  closed  one  at  Rushville  with 
good  results,  and  we  may  expect  to  hear  a  good  report  from 
Hyde's  School-house,  where  the  meeting  is  now  in  progress. 
Our  blessed  Lord  has  not  "  forgotten  to  be  gracious,"  nor  will 
we  forget  to  make  this  record  to  his  praise. 


262  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

The  reader  will  take  considerable  interest  in  the 
forth-coming  letter  from  Jesse  Bird  in  the  Advocate 
of  February  10,  1867: 

Indulge  me  in  saying  a  few  things  concerning  affairs  on  the 
Plattsburg  Circuit.  I  cannot  report  large  accessions  to  the 
Church.  A  few  have  united  with  us  since  Conference.  Our 
first  quarterly  meeting  at  Ilaynesville  was  continued  for  ten 
days,  resulting  in  the  addition  of  six  to  the  Church,  with  a  good 
degree  of  interest  among  the  outsiders.  At  Gosneyville  we  had 
a  good  meeting  about  the  ist  of  January. 

On  Friday,  the  4th  of  January,  we  commenced  a  meeting 
at  Plattsburg  and  continued  one  week,  during  which  \ve  held  a 
regular  Church  meeting.  I  was  there,  and  then  resolved  to  hold 
a  prayer-meeting,  when  there  was  no  preaching  until  a  better 
state  of  things  should  be  realized.  The  meeting  continued  un- 
til the  first  Sabbath  in  February.  On  that  day  we  administered 
the  holy  sacrament  to  the  people  and  had  a  general  class-meet- 
ing in  the  afternoon,  and  a  more  interesting  time  I  have  never 
seen  among  the  members  of  the  Church.  The  prayer-meet- 
ings are  still  kept  up. 

Now  you  may  call  this  a  revival  notice  or  what  you  please. 
If  a  great  outpouring  of  the  spirit  upon  the  Church  is  a  revival, 
then  we  are  having  a  revival  at  Plattsburg.  If  to  see  men  and 
women  earnestly  struggling  for  a  clean  heart  and  for  higher  at- 
tainments in  the  Christian  life  is  a  revival  of  religion,  then 
there  is  a  revival  on  Plattsburg  Circuit.  We  are  trying  to  get 
our  people  up  to  a  higher  standard  of  religion,  and  we  have 
been  greatly  encouraged  in  the  effort.  To  God  be  all  the  glory! 
At  the  close  of  the  meeting  on  Sunday  night  two  men  joined 
the  Church;  two  others  had  joined  during  the  meeting.  Thev 
promise  to  be  an  advantage  to  the  cause  of  Christ.  Earnest, 
faithful,  and  persevering  praver  always  results  in  blessing  to 
the  people. 

We  are  furnished  with  an  interesting  historic 
sketch  of  the 

CHURCH  AT  GLASGOW, 
which  we  give  in  the  following  pages: 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference.  263" 

A  short  summary  of  events  transpiring  in  Glasgow  just  pre- 
ceding  the  Conference  of  1865  is  necessary  to  the  proper  under- 
standing of  the  situation  there  at  that  time: 

Our  brick  church  had  been  occupied  for  several  months  as 
a  hospital  by  the  Federal  troops,  and  was  so  used  until  June  of. 
that  year.  A  Society  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  had  also  been 
organized  the  preceding  spring.  The  pastor  of  this  Society  was 
the  Rev.  D.  A.  McReady,  who  had  been  transferred  from  the 
Pittsburg  Conference  by  request,  made  through  Gen.  C.  B. 
Fisk. 

This  organization,  in  its  initial,  was  conceived  by  a  few  per- 
sons who,  under  stress  of  danger  in  war  times,  had  abandoned 
our  Church.  They  doubtless  supposed,  as  did  many  others  then, 
that  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  would  never  again  have  an  exist- 
ence in  this  country.  Two  of  our  ministers  had  tried  to  supply 
the  pastorate  here  made  vacant  by  the  death  of  Brother  Caples, 
but  were  compelled  to  leave  in  a  very  short  time — one,  the  ven- 
erable Andrew  Monroe;  the  other,  II.  A.  Bourland.  The  mem- 
bership were  therefore  deprived  of  both  their  houses  of  worship 
and  their  pastor,  and  were  living  daily  in  constant  apprehension 
of  greater  evils  yet  to  come.  It  was  currently  talked  that  the 
Southern  Methodist  Church  would,  in  the  main,  be  absorbed  by 
the  Northern  Methodist  Church,  and  the  remnant  be  dispersed 
among  other  denominations. 

To  begin  such  a  work  here  then  seemed,  therefore,  to  be  but 
anticipating  the  inevitable  tendency  of  events.  The  movement 
was  also  commenced  by  shrewd  calculations  of  prudence  and 
safety.  It  would  relieve  all  who  entered  into  it  from  the  odium 
of  being  in  fellowship  with  what  was  stigmatized  as  the  "  rebel 
Church,"  and  at  the  same  time  put  them  under  the  sheltering 
wing  of  that  Church  which  had  so  industriously  earned  the  ap- 
pellation of  the  "Union  Church." 

These  opinions  and  calculations  very  naturally  suggested 
another  line  of  policy.  In  order  to  demonstrate  their  loyalty 
and  insure  the  confidence  of  the  army,  the  State,  and  the 
Church,  this  new  Society  was  induced,  through  specious  argu- 
ments, and  by  well-timed  threats  from  their  imported  pastor,  to 
seize  all  the  property  of  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  in  Glas- 
gow. This  consisted  of  an  old  frame  building,  used  as  a  church 
before  the  separation  of  1845;  a  brick  church,  built  in  1846;  and 


264  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

a  parsonage,  bought  a  few  years  later.  They  claimed  legal  title 
to  the  old  frame,  under  cover  of  the  original  deed  made  to  the 
M.  E.  Church  in  1840,  before  the  division.  The  new  brick  and 
the  parsonage  were  simply  taken  under  the  protection  of  the 
military  power. 

In  August,  1865,  Mr.  McReady  was  preaching  in  the  brick 
church  and  occupying  the  brick  parsonage,  while  their  negro 
members  had  possession  of  the  old  frame.  The  character  of  this 
McReady  was  now  being  fully  revealed.  The  bold,  unscrupu- 
lous advantage  which  he  had  taken  of  men,  because  of  the  cir- 
cumstances then  around  them  and  the  lengths  to  which  he  had 
driven  them,  clearly  exposed  his  animus  and  caliber.  It  was 
known  that  the  liberty,  life,  and  property  of  any  individual  man 
in  this  community  was  suspended  upon  the  capricious  will  of 
that  petty  tyrant,  Col.  Kutzner,  and  his  gang  of  drunken,  mur- 
derous freebooters,  who  had  been  so  long  fastened  upon  this 
people.  Soon  after  their  removal  in  June,  1865,  just  after  our 
Palmyra  meeting,  one  of  our  preachers,  visiting  Glasgow,  was 
introduced  to  McReady,  and  said  to  him:  "I  hope  that  when 
our  pastor  comes  this  fall  you  and  he  can  work  together  cor- 
dially, and  bring  about  a  better  state  of  religious  feeling  among 
the  people."  He  replied:  "I  do  not  know  about  that.  I  have 
no  terms  to  make  with  rebels.  If  I  am  attacked,  I  shall  know 
how  to  defend  myself."  On  another  occasion,  when  told  that 
the  civil  law  would  compel  him  to  give  up  the  property  of  our 
Church,  he  angrily  asked:  "Do  you  suppose  that  there  is  a 
court  in  Missouri  that  would  dare  to  decide  against  the  military?  " 
It  was  this  very  fanatical  audacity  of  the  man  which  enabled 
him  to  dominate  men,  and  precipitate  them  into  acts  then  which, 
under  other  circumstances  and  in  cooler  moments,  they  would 
have  condemned  and  spurned.  He  played  upon  their  ignorance 
and  their  fears. 

In  members,  character,  piety,  and  wealth,  our  Church  here, 
before  the  war,  was  a  very  strong  one.  It  enrolled  many  names 
conspicuous  throughout  the  State  for  morality,  liberality,  intel- 
ligence, and  enterprise.  Among  these  may  be  mentioned  the 
Lewis  families,  of  whom  Judge  Henry  Lewis  was  truly  a  patri- 
arch of  Methodism  in  Missouri ;  the  Bartons,  the  Birches,  the 
Earicksons,the  Harrisons,  and  the  Swinneys,of  whom  William 
D.  Swinney  was  a  life-long  steward  and  the  financier  of  the 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference.  265 

Church,  who  died  in  1863.  We  can  give  an  instance  in  testimony 
of  Brother  Swinnej's  liberality  to  the  Church.  At  the  close  of  a 
Conference  year  we  told  him  there  was  a  deficiency.  He  asked 
how  much.  We  told  him  nearly  one  hundred  dollars.  Without 
saying  another  word,  he  handed  us  the  amount. 

All  shades  of  political  opinion  prevailed  among  the  mem- 
bers, especially  after  the  first  reverses  of  the  South,  and  after 
Gpv.  Jackson  was  driven  from  the  State,  opinions  ranging  from 
ultra  unionism  to  the  extremist  secession  proclivities.  Some 
fled,  some  were  banished,  and  some  were  killed.  Among  the 
outspoken  Radicals  were  Benjamin  W.  Lewis  and  his  brother, 
James  W.,  who  were  large  slave-holders  and  property  owners. 
Thereafter  they  took  quite  an  active  part  in  public  affairs  during 
the  war,  and  were  the  prime  movers  in  organizing  the  society 
of  the  M.  E.  Church  here. 

James  O.  Swinney  was  sent  to  Glasgow  Station  by  the  Con- 
ference of  1865.  Being  fully  informed  of  the  situation,  he  went 
directly  to  St.  Louis,  and  laid  the  facts  before  Gen.  Pope,  the 
commander  of  the  department,  and  asked  for  an  order  to  restore 
the  property  of  the  Church,  South,  in  Glasgow  to  its  lawful 
owners.  The  order  was  forwarded  to  him  by  mail  in  a  few  days, 
at  Glasgow.  In  a  pleasant  conversation  with  B.  W.  Lewis,  who 
was  also  in  St.  Louis,  that  gentleman  was  evidently  disposed, 
now  that  the  war  was  over,  and  the  military  withdrawn,  and 
every  thing  quiet,  to  act  with  that  prompt,  shrewd,  determined 
judgment  which  had  always  characterized  him.  To  sum  it  up, 
he  said:  "  I  want  nothing,  and  will  do  nothing  that  is  not  lawful 
and  right."  When  the  order  of  Gen.  Pope  was  received  at  Glas- 
gow the  pastor  and  trustees  got  the  key  of  the  brick  church  from 
the  negro  sexton  employed  by  McReady,  and,  going  in,  elected 
two  new  trustees  to  fill  the  vacancy  in  the  Board. 

Upon  coming  out  they  were  met  by  McReady  and  Noah 
Swacker,  who  peremptorily  demanded  the  key,  declaring  that 
they  had  an  order  from  the  Governor  authorizing  them  to  hold 
the  building. 

They  were  greatly  surprised  when  shown  the  order  of  Gen. 
Pope,  and  retired  for  a  consultation  with  their  friends.  A  few 
hours  later  they  said  the  matter  would  be  settled  when  Col. 
B.  W.  Lewis  came  home,  but  that  if  there  was  any  trouble 
the  Kutzner  militia  would  be  recalled.  Such  a  threat  created 


266  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

quite  a  panic  in  town.  In  a  day  or  two  Col.  Lewis  arrived,  and 
sent  word  that  it  would  be  better  to  surrender  the  key  than  to 
get  into  more  trouble. 

Telegraphing  to  Col.  Denny,  commander  of  this  district  at 
Huntsville,  he  replied:  "Surrender  the  key."  Accompanied 
by  Maj.  H.  C.  Cockerill,  the  pastor  went  to  the  house  of  Mr. 
Lewis  and  handed  him  the  key,  saying:  "We  obey  military 
order,  and  hand  you  the  key,  Col.  Lewis,  as  a  member  of  the 
Governor's  staff."  He  took  it  and  handed  it  to  McReady,  and 
the  interview  soon  ended.  In  a  few  days,  being  convinced  that 
there  was  no  renewal  of  martial  law  as  had  been  asserted,  but 
on  the  contrary  that  civil  law  was  in  full  force,  Mr.  T.  Shackel- 
ford,  the  most  prominent  lawyer  here,  and  a  member  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  was  asked  what  legal  process  was  necessary 
to  get  possession  of  our  property.  He  declined  to  advise,  say- 
ing: "  It  is  too  dangerous  to  attempt  any  thing  now."  Judge 
William  A.  Hall  and  Capt.  Reid,  of  Huntsville,  being  called  upon, 
gave  the  necessary  instructions  and  drew  up  the  form  of  de- 
mand to  be  signed  by  the  trustees  and  presented  to  McReady, 
saying  that  if  he  refused  to  comply  they  could  bring  suit  against 
him  before  any  magistrate  and  put  him  out  in  five  davs. 

B.  W.  Lewis  was  still  a  trustee  of  our  Church  property. 
After  all  the  other  trustees  had  signed  the  demand  it  was  taken 
to  him,  and  the  disciplinary  law  governing  trustees  was  shown 
to  him.  He  was  then  asked  as  an  avowed  law-abiding  man  to 
sign  the  paper.  After  a  few  moments'  earnest  thought,  he 
asked:  "Will  it  be  necessary  for  me  to  sign  this  if  the  key  is 
given  up?"  Being  answered  that  it  would  not,  he  said:  "Then 
meet  me  here  to-morrow  morning  at  9  o'clock." 

The  next  morning  he  brought  McReady  with  him,  who  gave 
up  the  key  quietly.  In  doing  this  Mr.  Lewis  stipulated  that  in 
restoring  the  brick  church  and  the  parsonage,  the  trustees 
should  refund  what  it  had  cost  him  to  repair  the  houses,  but 
that  he  would  assume  his  proportion  of  the  amount.  This  was 
readily  agreed  to,  and  thus  ended  the  matter. 

McReady  still  asserted  legal  claim  to  the  old  frame  church. 
No  contention  was  made  over  it  until  after  our  General  Confer- 
ence in  1866.  In  pursuance  of  fraternal  resolutions  adopted  by 
that  Conference,  a  well-accredited  minister  of  the  African  M. 
E.  Church,  traveling  through  the  State  organizing  Societies, 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  267 

came  to  Glasgow  and  succeeded  in  gathering  about  twenty 
members  into  his  Church,  most  of  whom  had  previously  been 
members  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  here.  This  fact  being 
made  known,  our  trustees  made  a  deed  to  them  for  the  old 
frame,  because  it  had  been  used  by  our  colored  members  for 
nearly  nineteen  years  already. 

The  deed  was  delivered  and  recorded,  and  then  a  formal  de- 
mand was  made  by  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  trustees  upon  Mc- 
Ready  for  the  delivery  of  the  property  to  them.  He  refused, 
and  suit  was  begun  in  Circuit  Court  at  once.  Before  the  day 
of  trial  arrived,  however,  better  counsels  prevailed,  and  the  M. 
E.  Church  purchased  the  property  from  its  owners  for  two 
thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  which  was  a  very  fair  valuation. 

The  membership  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  here  has  varied 
from  one  hundred  and  forty  to  one  hundred  and  sixty  since  the 
•war.  Deaths,  removals,  and  business  failures  have  greatly  di- 
minished its  financial  strength.  The  sad  train  of  evils  brought 
in  by  the  war  have  impaired  its  spiritual  tone  and  weakened  its 
social  power.  But  it  is  nevertheless  the  leading  Church  in 
Glasgow  to-day.* 

Rev.  A.  Monroe,  presiding  elder  of  the  Fayette 
District,  gives  a  very  interesting  communication  in 
the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  of  February  22, 
as  follows: 

I  am  always  glad  to  hear  from  the  other  districts  through 
your  columns,  so  perhaps  others  would  be  pleased  to  hear  from 
my  field  of  labor. 

I  commenced  my  year's  work  the  i2th  of  October,  and,  with 
the  divine  blessing,  have  met  my  appointments  in  regular  order. 
Found  the  preachers  at  work  doing  battle  for  God.  Several 
of  our  meetings  were  seasons  of  refreshing.  The  quarterly 
meetings  at  Rocheport  and  Glasgow  were  continued  with  pro- 
tracted efforts  by  their  pastors,  whose  labors  were  not  in  vain. 
At  both  meetings  souls  were  converted  and  the  Church  re- 
vived. 

The  labors  of  the  present  quarter  were  commenced  at  Stur- 
geon, in  the  Middle  Grove  Circuit.  Our  house  of  worship  at 

*Rev.  J.  O.  Swinney,  MS. 


268  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

that  place  was  greatly  damaged  during  the  war,  but  through  the 
untiring  efforts  of  Rev.  W.  T.  Ellington,  has  been  thoroughly 
repaired  and  furnished  for  public  service,  and  seats  a  large  con- 
gregation. This  is  creditable  to  the  community.  We  are  also 
indebted  to  our  friend  in  St.  Louis  who  generously  gave  mate- 
rial aid  in  time  of  need.  No  doubt  he  will  rejoice  with  those 
concerned  when  he  hears  that  the  labor  and  liberality  have  al- 
ready been  rewarded  a  thousand-fold  by  the  conversion  of  souls. 
A  glorious  revival  of  God's  work  commenced  at  my  quarterly 
meeting.  Great  seriousness  prevailed  from  the  beginning;  the 
interest  increased  until  Monday,  when  the  power  of  the  Lord 
was  present  "to  wound  and  to  heal."  There  were  several  clear 
and  powerful  conversions,  and  the  happy  subjects  did  not  wait 
for  the  preachers  first  to  publish  the  good  news,  but  virtually 
cried  with  a  loud  voice:  "Come  unto  me,  and  I  will  tell  you 
what  he  has  done  for  my  soul!"  I  remained  over  Wednesday 
night;  left  the  meeting  in  the  hands  of  Brothers  Ellington  and 
Taylor.  It  was  continued  many  days,  as  I  learn,  with  great 
success:  eighteen  conversions, twenty-three  additions  to  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South.  This  is  the  Lord's  doing,  and  marvelous 
in  our  eyes,  considering  that  we  were  a  few  months  ago  no  peo- 
ple. We  have  now  forty  or  fifty  members  and  a  comfortable 
house  of  worship. 

I  left  Sturgeon,  and  after  a  ride  of  thirteen  miles  reached  the 
town  of  Benick,  where  I  had  a  night  appointment.  When  at 
the  appointed  time  we  repaired  to  the  house  of  God  through 
mud  and  water  I  thought  the  congregation  would  be  quite 
small,  but  was  agreeably  surprised  to  find  the  large  church 
pretty  well  filled  with  attentive  hearers.  This  is  also  a  new- 
building— a  great  achievement  for  that  community.  What  they 
need  now  is  a  powerful  revival  of  true  religion.  When  we  re- 
tired the  weather  was  still  mild;  but,  alas  for  the  poor  itinerant! 
morning  came,  and  with  it  a  severe  snow-storm  from  the  north- 
west; ground  hard  frozen.  Friends  said:  "You  must  not  go; 
can't  make  the  trip;  road  as  rough  as  one  can  imagine;  the 
storm  direct  in  vour  face;  four  miles  of  prairie."  But  I  was  re- 
sponsible for  the  meeting  to  commence  that  night  in  Hunts- 
ville,  twelve  miles  distant,  so  I  said  it  was  useless  to  confer  with 
flesh  and  blood.  I  had  breasted  many  wintery  blasts  in  the  last 
years,  and  with  God's  blessing  would  try  it  again.  So,  all  things 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference  269 

ready,  I  mounted  my  old  companion  in  tribulation,  and  turned 
my  face  to  the  storm.  It  was  a  severe  trip  for  man  and  beast; 
none  more  so  during  my  intinerant  life;  but  1  was  well  fortified, 
and  reached  Huntsville  in  less  than  four  hours,  without  serious 
injury.  Owing  to  the  severity  of  the  weather,  the  congrega- 
tions were  small.  Brothers  Swinney  and  Root  were  present, 
and  by  Saturday  night  others  came:  Brothers  Richardson,  War- 
ren, James,  and  Broddis.  There  being  so  few  preachers  pres- 
ent, we  did  but  little  as  a  District  Conference;  but  adjourned  to 
meet  at  Roanoke.  All  agreed  to  unite  and  labor  for  a  good 
meeting.  Up  to  Tuesday,  when  I  had  to  leave,  there  were 
manifestations  of  the  divine  presence  and  strong  indications  of 
good. 

From  the  same  source  we  find  a  very  interesting 
account  given  of  Chillicothe  Station  by  the  pastor, 
Rev.  S.  W.  Cope.  He  says:  "We  have  had  a 
precious  meeting  of  three  weeks'  continuance; 
had  the  efficient  ministerial  aid  of  Brothers  Dock- 
ery,  Shores,  and  Metcalf.  The  results  of  this 
somewhat  protracted  effort  are  very  cheering. 
The  members  of  the  Church  are  greatly  revived, 
backsliders  reclaimed,  and  sinners  awakened  and 
converted  to  God.  During  the  meeting  twenty-nine 
joined  the  Church,  making  in  all  since  Conference 
forty-seven  additions  to  the  membership  of  our 
little  station.  We  feel  assured  that  the  Lord  of 
hosts  has  been  with  us,  and  will  be  with  us  to  the 
end.  All  agree  that  it  was  indeed  the  work  of  God. 
The  standard  of  piety  among  us  has  been  raised 
many  degrees.  Many  of  us,  in  our  Christian  ex- 
perience, live  much  nearer  heaven  than  ever  before. 
We  breathe  a  purer,  healthier  spiritual  atmos- 
phere, enjoy  a  sweeter,  holier  communion  with 
God,  and  have  a  livelier  hope  and  brighter  pros- 


270  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

pect  of  heaven.  Our  path  is  '  as  a  shining  light 
that  shineth  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day.' 
Thus  we  are  happy  and  rejoicing,  and  expect,  be- 
yond the  rolling  river,  in  a  '  nobler,  sweeter  song 
to  sing  God's  power  to  save.' ' 

Also,  from  the  same  source,  Rev.  J.  D.  Vincil, 
writing  from  Callao,  says:  "I  wrote  you  a  few 
days  since  concerning  the  opening  of  a  very  en- 
couraging revival  at  this  point.  The  work  has 
been  spreading  and  deepening  during  the  progress 
of  our  meeting,  embracing  every  age  from  the 
youthful  Sabbath-school  scholar  to  the  old  man. 
It  is,  in  every  view,  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
and  powerful  revivals  I  have  witnessed  in  my  life. 
I  have  rarely  ever  seen  so  deep  and  telling  a  work 
at  so  early  stage  of  the  meeting.  Only  six  days, 
and  there  have  been  quite  a  large  number  of  clear, 
deep,  and  powerful  conversions — over  twenty, 
with  twenty  valuable  accessions  to  our  Church; 
and  it  really  seems  as  if  the  work  had  just  com- 
menced. The  community  is  trembling  while  the 
ark  of  the  Lord  is  moving  forward  gloriously. 
Every  coming  together  is  crowned  with  success  and 
blessed  results.  The  work  goes  on,  and  the  meet- 
ing will  continue.." 

The  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  contains  an 
important  communication  from  Rev.  W.  M.  Rush, 
the  presiding  elder  of  St.  Joseph  District,  in  which 
he  gives  an  interesting  account  of  his  entire  field 
of  labor,  tells  what  every  preacher  is  doing,  and 
the  condition  of  every  station  and  circuit  in  his 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  271 

district.  It  is  indeed  multum  inparvo,  "  much  in 
little"  that  is,  much  history  in  a  nutshell.  We 
give  it  below,  and  feel  satisfied  that  it  will  interest 
the  reader  who  takes  pleasure  in  our  Church  his- 
tory: 

I  have  just  completed  my  second  round  on  the  St.  Joseph 
District.  I  am  glad  to  be  able  to  report  a  very  encouraging 
progress  during  the  first  half  of  the  year.  The  preachers  are  all 
at  their  respective  work;  and  a  more  earnest,  diligent,  and  faith- 
ful set  of  men  it  has  never  been  my  privilege  to  be  associated 
with.  Each  seems  determined  to  make  the  most  of  his  oppor- 
tunities for  usefulness,  and  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  is 
crowning  their  labors  with  encouraging  success. 

St.  Joseph  Station. — Brother  Leftwich  is  emphatically  a 
working  man,  and  his  labors  have  rendered  a  blessing  to  the 
people,  not  only  in  his  own  immediate  congregation  in  the  city, 
where  he  has  had  encouraging  success,  but  in  the  neighborhood 
where  he  has  conducted  a  gracious  revival  of  religion,  and  in 
other  places  where  he  has  preached  the  gospel  in  its  divine 
power. 

Rushville  Circuit. — Here  Brother  Barnett  is  endearing  him- 
self more  and  more  to  the  people,  by  his  diligence  and  faithful- 
ness and  zeal  in  the  work  of  the  ministry.  He  goes  in  and  out 
as  a  "father  among  the  people,"  and  God  makes  him  a  blessing 
to  them,  and  they  love  him.  He  has  recently  enjoyed  a  gracious 
revival  at  old  Sparta. 

Netv  Market  Circuit. — Here  Brother  Collet  is  doing  a  good 
work.  The  first  quarterly  meeting  at  Union  School-house  was 
protracted  with  blessed  results:  about  thirty  conversions  and 
accessions.  Some  success  also  at  other  points. 

Piaffe  City  and  Weston  Circuit. — Brother  Austin  is,  under  the 
blessing  of  God,  doing  a  good  work  on  this  circuit.  A  gracious 
revival  influence  is  pervading  almost  every  part  of  the  work. 
Sinners  have  been  convicted  and  many  have  been  converted 
and  added  to  the  Church. 

Liberty  Circuit. — This  circuit  was  left  to  be  supplied  at  the 
last  Conference.  Near  the  close  of  the  first  quarter  I  appointed 
Brother  Joseph  Y.  Blakey  to  take  charge  of  this  circuit.  Al- 


272  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

ready  the  prospects  are  very  encouraging.  At  Parkville  we 
have  had  a  blessed  revival,  and,  the  circumstances  considered, 
it  may  be  regarded  as  a  triumph  for  the  Church.  I  believe  that 
Brother  Blakey  will  be  a  blessing  to  that  circuit. 

Plattsburg  Circuit. — This  circuit  is  favored  with  the  labors 
of  Brother  Bird,  who  is  literally  warning  the  people  day  and 
night  with  tears.  Happy  are  the  people  who  have  so  faithful 
a  pastor,  a  minister  so  able  to  dispense  to  them  the  word  of 
life.  A  goodly  number  have  been  converted  and  added  to  the 
Church.  Brother  Bird  is  doing  a  very  good  work  in  the 
Church. 

Maysville  Mission. — A  most  glorious  revival  has  prevailed  on 
a  portion  of  this  charge.  My  heart  was  made  glad  at  the  sec- 
ond quarterly  meeting  to  witness  the  fruits  of  this  gracious 
work.  Brother  Hurst  has  been  doing  a  faithful  work,  and  well 
may  he  be  encouraged. 

Savannah  Circuit.— This  circuit  was  left  to  be  supplied  at  our 
last  Conference.  We  had  no  supply  the  first  quarter.  It  was 
supplied  the  second  quarter  by  Brother  Thomas  R.  Hedg- 
peth,  who  did  faithful  and  acceptable  service,  but  could  give  to 
the  circuit  only  a  portion  of  his  time.  I  have  now  appointed 
Rev.  J.  W.  Ellis  to  take  charge  until  next  Annual  Conference. 
Some  valuable  accessions  on  this  circuit  this  year. 

Maysville  Circuit. — Here,  I  think,  we  have  the  right  man  in 
the  right  place.  Brother  Davis  is  in  favor  with  all  the  people. 
No  great  revival,  but  a  steady  onward  movement.  Success  is 
certain  if  we  are  faithful. 

Albany  Circuit. — Brother  Zumwalt  has  here  a  wide  field  for 
usefulness,  and  although  there  is  much  to  discourage,  yet  the 
prospects  are  growing  brighter.  In  Albany  particularly  our 
Church  has  a  strong  hold.  We  have  had  a  good  number  of 
conversions  and  some  very  valuable  accessions. 

Oregon  and  Rockfort  Circuit. — This  circuit,  like  the  last  two 
mentioned,  lies  in  that  section  where,  during  the  war,  our 
Church  was  greatly  persecuted  and  desolated.  Brother 
McEwen  is  doing  a  good  work,  and  the  Church  is  steadily  gain- 
ing favor  with  the  people.  A  number  of  conversions  and  ac- 
cessions since  Conference. 

The  presiding  elder  reports  that  he  is  putting  in  his  time 
and  strength  as  best  he  can.  Since  Conference  he  has  trav- 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  273 

eled  fifteen  hundred  miles,  held  twenty-two  quarterly  meet- 
ings, performing  at  each  his  official  duties,  preached  one  hun- 
dred and  fifteen  times — being  an  average  of  between  five  and 
six  sermons  at  each  quarterly  meeting.  He  has  witnessed  the 
gracious  manifestations  of  the  divine  presence  in  the  salvation 
of  many  souls. 

The  same  person  gives  a  summary  report  of  his 
labors  at  the  close  of  the  year  in  the  following 
language:  "I  have  just  completed  my  work  for 
the  present  year  on  the  St.  Joseph  District,  Mis- 
souri Conference,  and  will  say  it  has  been  to  us  a 
year  of  encouraging  success.  About  one  thousand 
persons  have  been  added  to  the  Church.  The 
tide  of  public  sentiment  is  greatly  in  our  favor. 
In  Graham,  Nodaway  County,  where  last  year 
Brother  Hedgpeth  was  compelled  by  mob  violence 
to  close  his  quarterly  meeting,  we  held  a  quarterly 
meeting  two  weeks  ago.  Congregations  were  large 
and  orderly.  Had  a  good  meeting,  and  nineteen 
were  added  to  the  Church." 

Though  the  war  has  ended,  and  the  roar  of  the 
cannon  is  no  longer  heard  in  the  land,  persecution 
is  still  rife  in  some  sections  of  the  State  under  the 
operations  of  the  "test  oath,"  the  last  instrument 
of  persecution  during  those  troublous  times.  In- 
dicting, imprisoning,  punishing  in  many  ways,  and 
even  putting  to  death  persons  for  not  taking  an 
oath — which  oath  was  itself  in  direct  violation  of 
the  Constitution  and  laws  of  our  Federal  govern- 
ment. 

REV.  JESSE  FAUBION. 

This  loyal  citizen,  this  worthy  minister  of  the 

18 


274  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

gospel  and  honorable  member  of  the  Missouri 
Conference,  M.  E.  Church,  South,  met  with  try- 
ing and  sore  persecution  during  the  war  and  the 
prevalence  of  the  "test  oath."  He  has  given  a 
plain  and  straightforward  statement  of  his  troubles 
and  sufferings  in  his  own  language,  as  follows: 

In  the  year  1860  I  was  appointed  to  the  Princeton  Mission, 
Missouri  Conference,  and  settled  my  family  at  Lineville,  where 
I  remained  till  the  ad  of  July,  1861.  From  the  very  outbreak 
of  the  war  persecution  commenced  against  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  in  that  region,  and  increased  in  violence  until  by  the  first 
of  June  of  that  year  it  was  scarcely  possible  to  hold  a  meeting 
without  disturbance.  These  disturbances  became  so  common, 
and  the  spirit  of  lawlessness  so  fierce  against  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  and  especially  against  me  as  a  minister  of  that  de- 
nomination, that  for  purposes  of  safety  my  brethren  advised 
and  urged  me  to  abandon  that  field  of  labor  and  seek  a  home 
elsewhere,  which  I  did  on  the  2d  of  July,  1861.  The  pretext 
for  all  this  persecution  was  the  allegation  that  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  "  -was  the  cause  of  the  ~var ;  "  in  connection  with 
which  the  assertion  was  often  and  bitterly  made,  accompanied 
with  horrid  oaths,  that  as  a  Church  and  as  ministers  of  that 
Church  we  should  not  be  allowed  to  remain  in  the  country ; 
that  they  intended  "  to  wife  us  out"  etc. 

From  Lineville  I  went  to  Callaway  County,  Mo.,  and  by  the 
advice  of  the  presiding  elder  of  that  district  I  took  a  super- 
numerary relation  to  the  Conference,  rented  a  farm  and  com- 
menced trying  to  make  a  living  for  my  family.  In  September, 
1862,  about  forty  armed  men  under  the  command  of  Col. 
Brunce,  stationed  at  Jefferson  City,  came  to  my  house  in  my  ab- 
sence, and  robbed  us  of  our  blankets  and  all  my  wearing  clothes 
except  what  I  had  on,  and  took  also  my  saddle-bags,  pocket- 
knife,  and  even  my  spectacles.  They  also  took  my  horse,  and 
when  my  wife  was  pleading  for  him  one  of  the  company  told 
her  she  only  wanted  him  for  her  husband  to  ride  "»/  order  to 
preach  d—n  lies;  "  but  they  afterward  left  my  horse  at  the  house 
of  a  neighbor,  where  I  subsequently  got  him.  After  this,  in  the 
year  1864,  a  band  of  men  came  under  cover  of  night  and  took 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference.  275 

the  only  horse  I  had,  and  which  I  was  never  able  to  recover. 
In  1865  I  moved  to  Shelby  County,  Mo.,  and  settled  at  Shelby- 
ville.  On  my  arrival  I  found  that  there  had  been  no  preaching 
there  since  the  inauguration  of  the  "  test  oath,"  and  it  was  not 
considered  safe  for  any  man  to  preach  in  that  community  with- 
out taking  it.  The  members  of  the  Church  were  being  scat- 
tered, and  the  young  members  were  being  led  off  to  dancing 
parties  and  other  bad  places.  After  surveying  the  ground  I 
thought  that  I  might  just  as  well  be  sacrificed  as  any  one  else, 
and  in  order  to  get  the  people  out  I  made  an  appointment  to 
lecture,  which  I  did  two  or  three  times  before  the  people  came 
out  in  sufficient  numbers  to  encourage  me  to  make  an  appoint- 
ment for  preaching. 

I  then  preached  several  days  during  Christmas  week,  when 
the  people  came  out  in  such  great  numbers  that  the  friends  of 
the  new  law  compelling  a  minister  to  swear  fealty  to  human 
government  before  he  could  be  allowed  to  obey  his  divine  Mas- 
ter were  greatly  exasperated,  and  on  February  6,  1866,  I  was 
arrested  upon  a  charge  of  preaching  without  taking  the  oath  of 
loyalty.  The  County  Court  being  in  session,  I  was  brought  for 
trial  before  one  of  that  body — viz.,  Mr.  Robert  Lair.  The  arrest 
was  made  by  the  deputy  sheriff  (Mr.  James  Collier),  and  the  pros- 
ecution conducted  by  Attorney  M.  J.  Mandeville,  who  insisted 
that  it  was  an  aggravated  case.  He  said  that  the  prisoner  had 
not  only  preached,  but  had  also  lectured — the  whole  lecture  being 
used  to  cover  up  the  infamy  of  the  crime — and  said  that  the  bond 
should  be  made  strong,  to  prevent  the  prisoner  from  making  his 
escape. 

The  trial  being  ended — if  that  may  be  called  a  trial  where 
both  the  spirit  and  letter  of  the  law  are  disregarded,  for  this 
county  justice  had  no  jurisdiction  of  the  case — I  was  compelled 
to  give  bond  in  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars  for  my  appear- 
ance at  the  next  term  of  the  Circuit  Court,  or  go  to  prison. 

From  the  best  testimony  I  could  get,  Lieut.  William  Holliday, 
County  Clerk  and  a  member  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  was  the  main 
mover  in  that  act  of  persecution,  for  he  was  both  plaintiff  and 
witness  in  the  case.  The  i4th  and  isth  of  February,  1866,  was 
the  time  appointed  for  holding  the  quarterly  meeting  for  Shel- 
by ville  Circuit.  Between  the  time  of  my  arrest  and  the  time  for 
holding  the  meeting  a  man,  who  is  a  prominent  member  of  the 


276  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

M.  E.  Church,  told  our  members  that  they  had  better  use  their 
influence  to  prevent  us  from  holding  the  meeting,  for  if  we  did 
not  cease  preaching  without  taking  the  oath  blood  would  be 
shed.  But,  notwithstanding  the  threats  of  mob  violence  and  the 
prevailing  excitement  in  the  community,  Brother  Newland,  pre- 
siding elder  of  the  district,  came  and  held  the  meeting  without 
any  material  disturbance. 

On  Saturday  night  of  this  meeting,  and  on  Monday  morning 
and  night  after  it  closed,  circumstances  took  place  which  are 
very  significant;  and  I  merely  mention  them  and  leave  them  to 
speak  for  themselves.  I  was  living  in  a  house  which  had  four 
distinct  tenements,  divided  by  partitions,  all  of  which  were  occu- 
pied at  that  time.  Ou  Saturday  night,  after  -we  -were  gone  to  bed, 
one  of  these  families  moved  out.  On  Monday  morning  another 
moved  out;  and  on  that  night,  some  time  before  day,  this  build- 
,  ing,  with  all  its  tenements,  was  consumed  by  fire,  the  fire  orig- 
inating in  a  part  of  the  building  where  there  had  been  no  fire 
during  the  winter.  In  this  fire  we  lost  every  thing,  and  very 
narrowly  escaped  with  our  lives. 

At  the  sitting  of  the  May  term  of  the  Circuit  Court,  1866,  I 
appeared,  and  answered  to  my  name  when  called,  in  connection 
with  the  names  of  other  alleged  criminals,  when  my  securities 
were  released,  and  my  case  was  referred  to  the  grand  jury  in 
and  for  Shelby  County,  Mo.,  who,  being  strictly  charged  by  his 
honor,  Judge  Harrison,  in  regard  to  ministers  of  the  gospel 
guilty  of  the  crime  of  preaching  without  taking  the  oath,  found 
me  guilty  in  three  separate  cases,  to  answer  to  which  I  was  held 
to  bail  in  the  sum  of  three  thousand  dollars.  Messrs.  C.  R.  Cot- 
ton,}. R.  Taylor,  William  Cotton,  H.  Montgomery,  J.  Muldrow, 
W.  Gouch,  T.  Swearingen,  Mr.  Vaughn,  and  J.  M.  Ennis  were 
the  noble  men  who  went  on  my  bond,  for  which  act  of  kindness 
to  me  Mr.  Gouch  was  disfranchised.  I  wish  to  mention  in  this 
connection  that  Hon.  Mr.  Hawkins,  of  Canton,  Mo.,  and  H.  S. 
Lipscomb,  of  Palmyra,  volunteered  their  professional  services, 
and  saw  me  through  this  persecution  in  the  courts  until  my  case 
was  dismissed.  But  notwithstanding  threats  of  violence — such 
as  the  shedding  of  blood,  riding  on  a  rail,  etc. — I  continued  to 
preach  until  the  November  term  of  the  court,  when  my  case  was 
continued,  I  being  required  to  give  bond  with  new  securities  for 
my  appearance  at  the  next  term  of  court,  when  it  was  finally 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  277 

dismissed  because  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  had 

pronounced  the  test  oath  null  and  void. 

• 

REV.  S.  W.  BERGIN, 

a  faithful  and  useful  minister  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  gives  the  following  plain  and  unvarnished 
narrative  of  his  persecution  during  the  war  and 
under  the  test  oath: 

Only  for  the  sake  of  our  beloved  Church,  in  her  just  and 
reasonable  request  for  incidents  relating  to  the  persecution  of 
her  ministers,  would  I  write  this  brief  sketch  of  our  wrongs  in 
Harrison  County.  You  will  please  accept  this  as  a  true  historv 
of  our  persecutions  here  during  the  time  of  our  late  troubles, 
and  pardon  me  for  referring  to  myself  as  the  chief  sufferer  in 
this  portion  of  our  Lord's  vinevard. 

Soon  as  the  war  commenced  I  seemed  to  be  an  object  marked 
for  destruction.  Our  preachers  (W.  C.  Martin,  G.  C.  Brown, 
and  George  N.  Newton)  sent  to  this  work  all  retired  from  the 
post  of  danger,  leaving  me  to  stem  the  torrent  as  best  I  could. 
Our  people  still  desired  preaching,  and,  yielding  to  their  wishes, 
I  kept  up  regular  appointments  at  various  places  on  our  circuit. 
Meanwhile  I  was  shunned,  slandered,  insulted,  and  threatened. 

The  rope,  the  bullet,  confiscation,  etc.,  were  all  nothing  more 
than  my  due !  I  often  looked  for  death  or  ill  treatment  by  the 
roadside  or  at  the  place  of  public  worship.  Flags  waved  over 
me  while  preaching,  and  many  took  pleasure  in  reproaching  me. 

A  public  school-house  was  burned  to  prevent  my  ministra- 
trations  in  that  quarter.  The  Union  League  at  Eagleville  de- 
creed my  banishment,  and  an  armed  band  brought  me  the  un- 
welcome tidings,  giving  me  only  ten  days  to  escape.  The 
provost-marshal  (H.  T.  Combs)  refused  to  give  me  a  hearing, 
and  favored  my  exile.  I  trusted  in  God,  and  was  delivered  from 
the  destrover.  But  the  new  Constitution  came,  crowned  with 
the  terrible  oath  of  loyalty,  and,  as  I  could  neither  bow  the  knee 
to  Baal  nor  render  him  honor,  I  must  no  longer  preach  Jesus 
and  the  resurrection.  I  resorted  to  prayer  and  class  meetings. 
But  tins  was  too  much,  for  the  law  forbade  teaching;  and,  gath- 
ering strength  and  boldness  from  public  mandate,  an  attempt 
was  made  for  my  indictment  before  the  grand  jury. 


278  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

Failing  in  this,  effectual  means  were  to  be  used  in  seizing 
and  binding  me,  at  Snellsville,  and  beating  me  with  rods.  I 
moved  my  appointment  to  another  place.  About  this  time  I 
was  reorganizing  two  classes  of  my  torn  and  scattered  mem- 
bers, and  a  prominent  member  of  the  M.  E.  Church  told  me 
that  this  was  the  occasion  of  the  threatened  treatment. 

But  my  cup  of  sorrow  was  not  yet  full.  In  May,  1867,  a 
time  ever  dark  in  memory's  history,  we  attempted  to  hold  a 
quarterly  meeting  in  Snellsville,  at  a  home  reared  by  volun- 
tary subscription  from  our  members  and  others  for  school  and 
other  public  services.  A  night  or  two  preceding  its  commence- 
ment a  party  met  there  and  decided  that  we  should  not  hold 
the  meeting  at  that  place,  which  becoming  known,  we  moved 
to  Brother  Woodard's,  in  the  immediate  neighborhood.  In  this 
assembly  were  members  of  other  denominations.  Whereupon 
a  plan  was  originated,  doubtless,  to  break  up  by  mobbing  the 
meeting,  which  had  progressed  finely  on  Saturday.  Under  the 
disguise  of  keeping  order,  a  constable  was  employed  with  a 
writ,  who  arrested  my  son  on  Saturday  night  or  Sunday  morn- 
ing before  day,  and  was  proceeding  on  his  way  to  Snellsville 
to  bind  him  to  keep  the  peace,  when  an  armed  mob  arose  out 
of  ambush,  seized  the  prisoner,  dragged  him  through  the  brush 
and  swollen  creek,  tore  off  his  clothes,  beat  and  mangled  him 
miserably,  stamped  him  in  the  face,  tarred  him,  then  left  him 
lying  on  the  ground.  He  had  been  a  regular  Confederate  sol- 
dier, but  was  then  a  peaceable  man,  a  member  of  the  Church, 
and  was  quietly  attending  the  meeting.  They  also  struck  my 
eldest  son,  a  local  preacher,  across  the  face  with  a  club,  inflict- 
ing a  deep  scar,  and  producing  indistinctness  of  vision  for  life. 

I  will  here  record  another  incident  relating  to  that  eminent 
servant  of  God,  William  Ketron.  By  request  he  came  up  to 
give  us  a  quarterly  meeting  at  McCollum's  School-house.  But 
services  had  hardly  commenced  when  an  armed  band  came 
rushing  up,  took  the  old  man  out  of  the  house,  and  disregarding 
his  loyal  papers,  hurried  him  off  to  Eagleville,  where  he  was  sub- 
jected to  the  form  of  a  sham  trial.  Finding  no  fault  in  him, 
they  released  him,  but  compelled  him  to  leave  immediately  for 
home.  It  was  late  in  the  evening,  He  came  by  my  house,  de- 
pressed in  spirit  and  suffering  from  heat  and  fatigue. 

All  these  things  and  many  others  occurred  here,  doubtless, 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference.  279 

for  the  manifest  design  of  breaking  up  our  Church  in  this  place. 
But  she  still  lives;  and  now  a  traveling  preacher  and  his  fam- 
ily live  peaceably  in  my  house,  flushed  with  the  success  that 
attends  his  labors,  and  rejoicing  in  the  prospect  of  a  bright  fut- 
ure. The  Lord  be  praised  for  our  happy  and  wonderful  deliv- 


This  year  is  characterized  by  a  general  visitation 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  the  M.  E.  Church,  South- 
glorious  "  times  of  refreshing  from  the  presence  of 
the  Lord."  The  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  is 
teeming  with  revival  news  from  all  parts  of  the 
State.  Hundreds  and  thousands  of  conversions 
and  additions  to  the  Church  are  reported  by  the 
faithful  embassadors  of  Christ.  The  work  of 
grace  in  the  Church  is  no  less  wonderful:  back- 
sliders called  home  from  their  wanderings,  the 
standard  of  Christian  experience  greatly  elevated, 
and  a  more  complete  consecration  to  the  service  of 
God. 

Rev.  W.  A.  Tarwater  speaks  encouragingly  of 
his  work  on  the  Flint  Hill  Circuit.  Had  revivals 
at  several  of  his  appointments,  assisted  in  his  pro- 
tracted meetings  by  Rev.  J.  Allen,  whose  ministra- 
tions were  blessed  of  God  in  the  conversion  of 
souls  and  the  edification  of  believers — fifty-eight 
accessions  to  the  Church  during  the  year. 

Rev.  T.  B.  King  gives  a  good  account  of  his 
work  at  Richmond.  A  new  and  excellent  house 
of  worship  was  dedicated  to  the  service  of  God. 
Dr.  W.  M.  Leftwich,  of  St.  Joseph,  officiated  in 
the  dedicatory  service.  The  meeting  was  contin- 
ued, and  God  filled  the  new  church  with  the  maj- 


280  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1^66-67. 

esty,  power,  and  glory  of  his  presence,  signifying 
thereby  his  recognition  of  the  dedication.  The 
hearts  of  God's  people  were  filled  to  overflowing 
and  were  turned  like  "streams  in  the  south,"  and 
they  were  heard  to  say:  "The  Lord  has  done 
great  things  for  us,  whereof  we  are  glad."  Broth- 
ers Devlin  and  Proctor  assisted  in  the  meeting, 
preaching  the  gospel  in  its  simplicity,  purity,  and 
power.  Thirty  -  eight  persons  united  with  the 
Church. 

The  labors  of  Rev.  R.  A.  Austin  on  the  Weston 
and  Platte  City  Circuit  are  being  crowned  with 
great  success.  He  had  an  unusually  interesting 
revival  at  Platte  City,  in  which  sixty  persons  expe- 
rienced the  converting  grace  of  God  and  were 
made  to  rejoice  in  his  great  salvation  from  the 
power  of  Satan  and  the  dominion  of  sin,  fifty- 
five  of  whom  enlisted  in  the  service  of  Christ  and 
avouched  themselves  to  be  on  the  Lord's  side  by 
joining  the  Church.  A  large  proportion  of  the 
converts  were  old  men  and  heads  of  families,  who 
proved  the  genuineness  of  their  religion  by  erect- 
ing domestic  altars  around  which  they  gathered 
their  families  for  morning  and  evening  sacrifice  of 
prayer  and  praise  to  the  Father  of  Lights,  from 
whom  cometh  every  good  and  perfect  gift.  About 
twenty  promising  young  men  were  made  to  feel 
the  joy  of  pardoned  sin,  two  or  three  of  whom  it 
is  thought  will  become  preachers.  The  influence 
of  the  revival  pervaded  the  entire  community,  and 
religion  became  the  all-absorbing  theme.  It  also 


1866-67.  Missouri  Conference.  281 

reached  the  colored  people,  a  number  of  whom 
embraced  religion  and  united  with  our  Church. 
They  have  obtained  permission  to  build  a  gallery 
in  our  church  for  their  accommodation,  and  are 
now  raising  the  money  for  that  purpose.  The  re- 
vival has  visited  every  appointment  on  the  circuit 
except  one,  and  Brother  Austin  was  making  ar- 
rangements and  rallying  his  forces  to  besiege  it  as 
early  as  practicable.  Dr.  Leftwich  and  Rev.  Cat- 
lin  constituted  his  help  in  the  meetings.  To  the 
present  time  the  membership  of  the  Church  has 
been  increased  by  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
persons. 

Liberty  Circuit,  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev. 
J.  Y.  Blakey,  is  also  being  visited  with  the  con- 
victing and  converting  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
At  several  different  points  they  have  been  favored 
with  gracious  revivals.  Had  a  joyous  time  at 
Faubion  Chapel,  where  God  gloriously  manifested 
his  great  power  in  the  salvation  of  immortal  souls. 
They  also  had  an  interesting  time  at  Missouri  City. 
The  members  there  manifested  their  zeal  for  the 
Lord  by  building  a  neat  and  convenient  house  of 
worship.  The  accomplishment  of  this  enterprise 
was  very  creditable  to  them  in  view  of  their  small 
membership  and  financial  weakness.  The  house 
is  not  only  built,  but  all  indebtedness  has  been  liqui- 
dated. They  demonstrated  the  truthfulness  of  the 
old  familiar  adage :  "  Where  there  is  a  will  there  is  a 
way."  At  the  preacher's  last  report  seventy-five 
persons  had  their  names  enrolled  in  the  Church 


282  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1866-67. 

register.  Revs.  S.  H.  Newton  and  L.  W.  Cooper 
rendered  ministerial  help  in  the  meetings. 

Rev.  W.  E.  Dockery,  presiding  elder  of  Chilli- 
cothe  District,  speaks  words  full  of  cheer  concern- 
ing his  field  of  labor.  They  are  having  revivals 
in  almost  every  charge  in  his  district — one  in  full 
blast  at  Carrpllton  attracting  public  attention  and 
bringing  the  community  under  its  sacred  power. 
When  last  reported  forty-one  had  joined  the  army 
of  the  Lord  and  were  righting  the  good  fight  of 
faith  under  the  banner  of  Prince  Immanuel.  It  is 
a  good  sign  to  see  persons  working  for  their  Mas- 
ter immediately  after  they  are  converted.  It  is 
one  of  the  satisfactory  evidences  of  their  spiritual 
regeneration — that  they  have  passed  from  the  death 
of  sin  into  the  life  of  Christ.  "  I  must  go  and  tell 
it  to  others ' '  is  one  of  the  first  feelings  of  him  who 
is  "born  again."  Indeed,  is  not  the  interest  we 
feel  for  the  salvation  of  sinners  a  very  good  crite- 
rion by  which  to  judge  our  religion  ? 

"Two  new  churches  completed  and  paid  for 
this  year — one  at  Richmond,  the  other  at  Chil- 
licothe ;  two  others  commenced — one  at  Carroll- 
ton,  the  other  at  Breckenridge,  Gallatin  Circuit; 
also  working  on  the  old  churches  and  putting  them 
in  good  repair.  Now,  as  the  war  is  over,  they  are 
in  possession  of  all  their  churches  in  the  district. 
Five  hundred  persons  have  united  with  the  Church, 
and  peace  prevails  in  all  their  borders.  The  pre- 
siding elder  rejoices  in  the  personal  realization  of 
the  fact  that  Chillicothe  District  is  not  dead,  but 


1866-67-  Missouri  Conference.  283 

alive  and  working  earnestly  in  the  Lord's  vineyard, 
while  their  labors  are  crowned  with  glorious  suc- 
cess. We  are  not  at  all  surprised  at  his  rejoicing, 
for  such  a  blessed  state  of  things  was  enough  to 
make  him  jubilant." 


CHAPTER  XII. 
MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Statistical  Business — Increase  of  Membership — Eighty-seven 
Preachers  Receive  Their  Appointments — Biography  of  Rev. 
W.  G.  Caples — Incident  in  the  Early  History  of  Bishop  Mar- 
vin—A Good  Report  of  Chillicothe  District  by  Rev.  W.  E. 
Dockery — Sketch  of  Rev.  E.  R.  Miller's  Life  and  Work  by 
Himself — Rev.  T.  B.  King  Gives  a  Good  Report  of  His 
Field  of  Labor — Other  Interesting  Accounts  of  Revivals  by 
Revs.  D.  C.  Blackwell,  J.  R.  Taylor,  and  Other  Preachers. 

ON  September  4,  1867,  the  fifty-first  session  of 
the    Missouri    Conference    was    opened    by 
Bishop  Marvin   at    Macon   City,    Mo.,    John    D. 
Vincil  elected  Secretary. 

The  following  preachers  were  admitted  on  trial: 
W.  McK.  Gilliam,  S.  L.  Woody,  P.  D.  Vandeven- 
ter,  W.  L.  Blackwell,  E.  Carlyle,  H.  W.  Currin, 
J.  Y.  Blakey,  G.  Tanquery,  W.  F.  Thrasher,  H. 
P.  Bond,  J.  W.  Jordan.  Admitted  into  full  con- 
nection: T.  Penn,  J.  A.  Mumpower,  B.  F.  Zum- 
walt,  J.  Metcalf,  and  T.  B.  King;  and  were  also 
elected  and  ordained  elders.  Local  preachers 
elected  and  ordained  deacons:  J.  S.  Hardgrove, 
S.  L.  Woody,  E.  Carlyle,  W.  D.  Fortune,  J.  Y. 
Blakey,  and  G.  Tanquery.  The  following  traveling 
preachers  were  elected  and  ordained  elders:  J. 
King,  N.  P.  Halsey,  and  H.  A.  Davis.  Located 
this  year:  F.  A.  Savage,  H.  S.  McEwin,  S.  K. 
Fowler,  and  J.  F.  Riggs.  Supernumerary.  J.  0- 
C284) 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  285 

Swinney,  T.  Hurst,  and  A.  Albright.  G.  Fenton 
and  M.  L.  Eads,  superannuated. 

Reported  this  year:  White  members,  13,778; 
colored  members,  324;  local  preachers,  105.  In- 
crease in  membership  over  last  year,  2,250. 

Having  enjoyed  the  pleasant  associations  of  an- 
other Annual  Conference,  and  being  greatly  en- 
couraged by  the  success  of  the  previous  year,  the 
preachers,  eighty-seven  in  number,  received  their 
appointments  and  went  out  "quickly"  on  their 
way  rejoicing  in  hope  of  another  successful  year 
in  preaching  the  gospel  and  in  the  great  work  of 
saving  immortal  souls.  Nothing  delights  them  so 
much  and  makes  them  so  happy  as  to  see  sinners 
converted  and  prodigals  returning  to  their  heav- 
enly Father's  house. 

WILLIAM  G.  CAPLES. 

The  biography  of  this  eminently  great  and  good 
man  should  have  appeared  in  the  Conference  year 
of  his  death,  but  we  had  written  the  history  of  that 
year  before  we  received  a  suitable  historic  sketch 
of  his  ministerial  life  and  character.  We  feel  sat- 
isfied, however,  that  it  will  be  read  with  no  less  in- 
terest let  it  appear  in  whatever  part  of  this  history 
it  may.  The  biography  of  one  so  extensively 
known  and  so  universally  admired  will  itself  at- 
tract attention  and  elicit  interest  regardless  of  ev- 
ery thing  else.  It  has  been  furnished  by  one  who 
was  long  and  intimately  acquainted  with  him,  and 
reads  as  follows: 


286  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

William  Goff  Caples  was  a  man  of  such  commanding  abili- 
ties, and  so  naturally  a  leader,  that  his  personal  impress  will 
long  abide  with  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  His  very  name  is  a 
household  word  to-day  in  the  older  Methodist  families  throughout 
all  North  Missouri.  His  memory  therefore  deserves  more  than 
a  passing  mention.  A  short  sketch  of  his  ministerial  character 
ought  to  have  a  place  in  this  history.  As  we  recall  him,  how 
vividly  he  stands  before  us!  Above  the  medium  height, and  of 
somewhat  angular  form,  he  comes  with  a  slouching  gait,  but 
with  a  firm  tread;  while  he  carries  his  head  slightly  advanced, 
and  looks  altogether  like  a  man  moving  forward  with  a  pur- 
pose. Upon  a  nearer  view  his  swarthy  complexion  and  fur- 
rowed lines  about  his  brow  and  mouth  become  visible. 

It  is  only  when  he  speaks,  however,  that  his  wonderfully  ex- 
pressive and  mobile  countenance  lights  up,  and  the  real  man 
begins  to  appear.  Power  and  gentleness,  intelligence  and  sa- 
gacity all  seem  blended  in  the  glance  of  that  large,  clear,  black 
eye,  while  firmness  and  courage  are  unmistakably  written  on 
his  massive  lower  jaw,  and  his  mouth  is  formed  to  express  all 
human  emotions  at  will. 

You  would  say  he  was  a  homely  man  at  first  sight,  but  never 
after  you  knew  him  well.  There  was  a  mysterious  power  with- 
in that  somehow  completely  transformed  the  outer  man. 

He  was  one  who  seemed  to  hold  life  as  a  happv  treasure, 
which  he  had  found  in  Jesus  Christ.  He  was  evermore  the  glad 
immortal  grasping  two  worlds  as  verily  his  own.  It  was  a 
common  form  of  greeting  with  him  to  say  to  a  brother:  "God 
bless  your  immortality!"  Yet  he  was  no  sentimental  fanatic. 
His  was  a  stalwart  faith,  working  on  the  Pauline  model  of  true 
manliness,  ever  ready  to  face  all  the  facts  of  this  life  with  a 
cheerful  and  unfaltering  spirit.  If  there  was  any  excess  of  en- 
thusiasm in  him,  it  was  in  that  he  sometimes  fancied  that  he 
could  discern  the  hand  of  God  working  in  the  affairs  of  men  so 
as  to  forecast  his  future  providences.  Upon  some  occasions  he 
almost  claimed  prophetic  visions.  Perhaps  it  was  this  high  de- 
gree of  impressibility  and  exalted  fervor  which  gave  him  such 
extraordinary  supremacy  over  men.  While  thus  lifted  up  in 
spirit  almost  to  the  third  heavens,  the  grandeur  of  his  concep- 
tions and  the  great  boldness  of  his  utterances  attracted  and  en- 
tranced all  who  heard  him.  Many  now  living  can  testify  to  the 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  287 

spiritual  power  which  sometimes  seemed  to  be  given  him  in 
the  pulpit.  If  so  many,  among  the  thousands  converted  under 
his  ministry,  have  remained  steadfast  in  the  faith,  it  was  not 
from  any  thing  like  a  logical  conviction  of  the  truth  as  pre- 
sented by  him.  His  sermons  were  not  constructed  that  way. 
But  it  was  because  his  direct  vehement  deliverance  of  the  truth 
so  penetrated  their  consciousness  as  to  awaken  a  compulsory 
answer  from  them  to  the  felt  claims  of  God  upon  their  souls. 

So  deep,  so  pungent,  so  all-pervading  was  the  experience 
wrought  in  them  that  no  after  experiences  could  ever  expunge 
the  records  of  consciousness  made  in  that  hour.  He  was  what 
has  been  not  inaptly  termed  a  "  Holy  Ghost  preacher."  He 
was  not  a  student  of  books.  He  studied  the  Bible,  and  the  Bible 
alone — studied  it  on  his  knees,  and  from  it  he  drew  his  inspira- 
tion, and  by  it  sought  to  be  "  thoroughly  furnished  unto  every 
good  word  and  work." 

He  loved  to  preach,  because  he  loved  men  with  all  the  con- 
straints of  Christly  love.  He  was  eminently  social.  Magnani- 
mous, generous,  with  lively  sensibilities  and  tender  sympathies, 
he  could  say  what  he  would  and  you  felt  that  he  loved  you. 
Few  could  withstand  the  spell  of  his  personal  magnetism.  His 
marvelous  powers  of  wit,  humor,  and  mimicry  sometimes  led 
him  beyond  the  limits  of  propriety —sometimes  wounded  the 
feelings  of  the  oversensitive;  sometimes  called  down  upon  him 
the  censure  of  his  sober  friends.  But  his  joyous,  loving  spirit  was 
irrepressible.  Nothing  could  daunt  him,  nothing  could  dry  up 
the  fountains  of  immortal  joy  and  hope  which  were  constantly 
welling  up  from  the  depths  of  his  heart.  As  occasion  required, 
his  versatility  to  make  a  quick  and  complete  transition  from 
one  state  of  mind  to  another  was  simply  marvelous.  His  un- 
bent bow  could  in  a  moment  be  strung  again,  and  the  arrow  di- 
rected to  the  intended  mark. 

He  has  had  many  imitators,  but  for  the  most  part  their  hu- 
mor has  been  simple  frivolity,  and  their  wit  a  mere  play  upon 
words.  They  lacked  that  deep  under-current  of  brotherly  love 
which  was  the  well-spring  that  gave  coloring  to  all  his  witti- 
cisms. If  he  lashed  the  lazy  idler,  or  berated  and  shamed  the 
sluggish  soul ;  if  he  transfixed  the  scoffer  with  pitiless  ridicule, 
or  played  the  pretentious  hypocrite,  he  did  it  with  the  same  in- 
tent that  he  wept  with  the  mourner,  or  whispered  words  of  the 


288  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

tenderest  sympathy  and  comfort  to  the  disconsolate  soul ;  it  was 
that  he  might  do  them  good  for  the  love  of  Christ. 

Having  once  counted  the  cost,  his  purpose  never  nagged  to 
be  true  to  the  Master  and  to  be  ready  to  answer  to  every  call 
as  a  minister  of  the  gospel.  In  what  he  conceived  to  be  duty, 
or  in  defense  of  that  which  he  deemed  to  be  right,  he  was  ever 
bold,  sometimes  even  rash.  No  work  was  too  hard  for  him ; 
for  he  was  a  model  itinerant,  and  accepted  his  appointment  as 
having  been  assigned  to  him  by  the  great  Head  of  the  Church. 
If  the  charge  he  served  would  not  support  his  family,  he  could 
and  did  do  it,  even  if  he  had  to  cut  cord- wood  and  haul  it  to 
market. 

Next  to  God  he  loved  the  Church  and  studied  to  direct  her 
resources  and  spiritual  energies  into  the  widest  fields  of  useful- 
ness. To  him  the  Church  in  Missouri  is  largely  indebted  for 
that  system  of  education  that  is  now  in  successful  operation. 
Central  College,  supplemented  and  supported  by  district  high 
schools,  was  his  plan  for  which  he  labored  with  unremitting 
zeal.  He  insisted  upon  and  eloquently  advocated  at  every  Con- 
ference a  thorough  course  of  theological  study  for  the  voung 
preachers.  Uneducated  himself,  he  was  not  blind  to  the  de- 
mand for  that  ability  and  skill  which  critical  book  knowledge 
alone  can  give  to  combat  successfully  the  errors  of  the  times. 

But  for  highest  spiritual  education,  for  greatest  development 
of  the  heart,  and  for  the  thorough  knowledge  of  human  nature 
which  can  make  a  man  wise  to  win  souls,  he  magnified  what  he 
loved  to  call  the  "  Methodist  college  on  horseback  " — an  tin- 
trammeled  itinerancy. 

What  a  man  he  was  at  Conference!  His  spirit  seemed  to 
pervade  the  whole  body.  He  knew  by  heart  what  it  was  to  be 
on  the  circuit,  in  the  station,  around  the  district.  He  knew  the 
people  everywhere,  and,  quick  to  discern  character,  he  soon 
sized  the  preachers,  and  he  loved  to  look  over  the  whole  field 
as  the  workers  stood  before  him.  Sometimes  with  admirable 
sagacity  and  tact  he  could  say,  or  do,  or  look  just  the  right 
things  to  tone  up  or  to  tone  down,  to  encourage  or  restrain 
every  single  preacher  there.  A  very  notable  effect  of  his  per- 
sonal bearing  at  these  annual  reunions  was  the  contagiousness 
of  his  brotherly  love.  It  tended  to  inspire  and  unify  the  Con- 
ference to  such  a  degree  that  the  Missouri  Conference  became 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  289 

noted  among  the  Conferences  for  the  good-will  and  kindly  con- 
sideration which  each  member  habitually  entertained  for  every 
other  member. 

What  fervency,  what  pathos  there  was  in  his  Conference 
prayers!  While  he  talked  with  Jesus,  entreating  his  constant 
leadership  and  care  the  coming  year  for  that  devoted  band  of 
consecrated  heralds,  the  very  lowliest  one  there  felt  himself 
borne  upward  into  a  clearer,  purer  atmosphere  of  faith,  hope, 
and  love.  The  Holy  Ghost  would  come  down  and  baptize  every 
soul  with  renewed  unction,  until  each  heart  burned  with  a  more 
ardent  devotion  to  Jesus  and  his  word.  So  it  was  at  the  Confer- 
ence in  1863.  Surely  God  was  preparing  his  messengers  in  that 
hour  for  the  baptism  of  persecution  and  blood  so  soon  to  over- 
take them. 

Brother  Caples  came  to  Glasgow  that  year  with  the  most 
anxious  solicitude.  This  was  one  of  the  oldest  Churches  in  the 
State.  It  was  a  large  slave-holding  community,  and  the  center 
of  extensive  trade  and  great  wealth.  Being  a  point  of  so  much 
importance,  he  was  selected  as  the  one  perhaps  best  qualified  to 
meet  the  peculiar  demands  upon  the  ministry  during  those 
troublous  times.  With  a  few  exceptions,  to  be  mentioned  here- 
after, the  membership  of  the  Church  at  that  time  were  all,  in  a 
greater  or  less  degree,  what  were  known  as  Southern  sympathiz- 
ers. The  opinions  and  position  of  Brother  Caples  were  well  un- 
derstood. He  had  at  one  time  started  out  as  chaplain  of  a  com- 
pany recruited  in  Chariton  County  for  Price's  army,  but  was 
captured  at  Blackwater  and  kept  prisoner  in  McDowell's  Col- 
lege, St.  Louis,  for  several  months. 

Being  released  at  last  on  parole,  he  had  resumed  pastoral 
work  in  the  summer  of  1863.  But  this  incident  had  made  him 
a  marked  man  in  military  circles.  The  personal  difficulties  and 
dangers  which  such  a  position  involved  at  that  time  he  never 
seemed  to  realize.  He  had  unbounded  confidence  in  the  ulti- 
mate success  of  the  South,  for  he  was  an  ardent  adherent  of  the 
State's  rights  doctrine.  So  strong  were  his  convictions  that 
among  supposed  friends  privately  he  did  not  restrain  the  free  ex- 
pression of  his  views  and  feelings.  It  was  this  confidence  in 
future  results,  in  professed  friends  around  him,  that  led  to  all  the 
trials  and  indignities  to  which  he  was  subsequently  subjected. 
No  counsels  of  caution  were  heeded.  Even  those  who  loved 
19 


290  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

him  and  coincided  in  view  with  him  were  often  alarmed  for 
him  as  they  listened  to  his  rash  utterances.  But  such  was  the 
man.  He  believed  that  he  was  right  and  that  God  was  on  his 
side,  and  he  knew  no  fear,  and  disdained  policy.  The  rift  in  the 
Church  here  had  already  begun.  It  was  born  in  the  spirit  of 
purely  political  policy,  and  took  definite  shape  and  action  in  the 
fall  and  winter  of  1864.  As  the  months  passed  by  the  Federal 
authorities  become  more  and  more  watchful  and  exacting. 
Spies  were  set  to  watch  Brother  Caples.  Betrayed  by  some 
whom  he  trusted,  he  soon  became  extremely  obnoxious  to  the 
military  commander  here.  Gen.  C.  B.  Fisk  said:  "That  man 
Caples  is  doing  us  more  harm  than  could  a  whole  regiment  of 
rebels."  In  vain  was  Brother  Caples  steadfastly  consistent  in  all 
his  ministrations.  In  vain  were  all  his  sermons  rind  his  prayers 
of  a  purely  religious  character,  for  his  private  talk  spread  more 
rapidly  and  had  greater  effect  than  did  all  his  pastoral  labors. 
From  that  hour  he  was  "spotted."  He  was  ordered,  under  for- 
feit of  his  life,  to  keep  open  the  telegraph  line  coming  into 
Glasgow.  He  did  the  work  daily,  and  reported  at  head-quarters 
in  true  military  style.  Troops  were  made  to  quarter  on  him 
frequently.  Threats  were  made  against  him,  only  to  call  forth 
a  smile  of  confident  safety.  Being  under  parole  in  a  garrisoned 
town  among  life-long  friends,  he  laughed  at  "the  thought  of 
danger. 

No  doubt  his  cheerfulness  and  courage  were  largely  due  to 
the  fixed  purpose  he  had  formed.  It  was  his  cherished  belief 
that  he  had  a  mission  to  fulfill  after  the  war.  The  conflict 
over,  peace  restored,  and  the  South  victorious,  he  believed  that 
his  work  would  be  to  allay  all  smoldering  animosities  in  North- 
west Missouri,  to  comfort  the  sick,  the  wounded,  the  crippled, 
the  widows  and  orphans — in  short,  to  be  a  minister  of  consola- 
tion everywhere.  To  do  this  successfully  he  said  it  was  better 
that  he  should  suffer  all  that  might  befall  him,  for  so  only  could 
he  be  effectually  brought  into  full  sympathy  with  the  suffering. 
Such  was  his  faith  and  his  consecrated  purpose  on  the  day  when 
that  strangely  directed  shell  struck  him  the  fatal  blow.  Had  he 
lived  a  little  longer,  he  would  most  probably — indeed,  most  cer- 
tainly— have  been  tortured  to  death  by  the  same  man  who  wan- 
tonly murdered  Robinson,  Price,  Hasten,  and  others  in  this 
vicinity.  • 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  291 

May  we  not  suppose  that  this  firm  believer  in  special  provi- 
dences was  watched  over  and  taken  from  the  evil  to  come  just 
at  the  time  when  his  faith,  fortitude,  and  consecrated  purpose 
were  all  in  full  tide  of  earnest  activity?  So  we  estimate  him 
now.  The  great  judgment-day  alone  can  perfectly  reveal  the 
character  of  this  wondrously  gifted  man.* 

The  following  is  a  short,  thrilling  incident  given 
in  a  secular  paper  by  Rev.  S.  W.  Cope.  Refer- 
ring to  the  time  of  the  incident,  the  writer  says  : 

The  Church  is  being  sorely  tried,  her  faith  is  being  put  to  the 
severest  test,  the  wheels  of  Zion  are  clogged,  and  the  powers  of 
darkness  are  seemingly  too  great  for  the  forces  of  the  Church. 
In  their  discouragement  some  waver  and  others  give  up  in  de- 
spair. At  this  juncture  of  the  meeting  there  is  a  large  audience 
seated,  waiting  to  hear  preaching.  Comparatively  a  young- 
looking  man  is  in  the  pulpit.  His  personal  appearance  is  not  at 
all  commanding  or  prepossessing.  He  is  known  to  the  Church, 
however,  as  one  worthy  of  her  confidence.  Like  Barnabas,  "he 
is  a  good  man,  and  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  of  faith."  The 
Church  is  in  sympathy  with  him,  and  while  he  preaches  she  is 
engaged  in  earnest  and  agonizing  prayer.  The  preacher,  com- 
prehending the  situation,  casts  himself  on  God  for  help.  The 
help  came,  mighty  to  save.  Divine  and  human  agencies  are 
combined.,  and  victory  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  the 
glorious  result. 

In  the  midst  of  the  sermon  the  preacher  seemed  to  be 
brought  face  to  face  with  the  devil.  Now  it  is  a  hand-to-hand 
fight.  With  a  sudden  stamp  of  his  foot,  the  preacher  exclaimed: 
"Begone!  Get  ye  out  and  away  from  here,  Satan !"  The  powers 
of  darkness  gave  way,  and  the  enemy  disappeared.  These  were 
words  of  all-conquering  faith,  and  with  their  utterance  came  the 
turning  point,  followed  by  a  succession  of  victories  the  most 
grand  and  glorious.  The  preacher  was  none  other  than  our  be- 
loved E.  M.  Marvin,  subsequently  one  of  the  bishops  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  than  whom  no  one  ever  stood  higher  in  the 
confidence  of  the  Church  and  in  favor  with  the  people. 

*Rev.  J.  O.  Swinney,  MS. 


292  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

Rev.  W.  E.  Dockery  gives  a  good  report  of  the 
Chillicothe  District,  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Ad- 
vocate of  February  12,  1868: 

I  make  the  following  as  my  first  report  from  Chillicothe  Dis- 
trict: The  preachers  are  all  well,  and  doing  good  work  in  the 
service  of  their  Master.  The  spiritual  condition  of  our  people 
is  improving;  family  religion  is  becoming  more  common; 
prayer-meetings  are  well  attended,  and  other  means  of  grace 
are  not  neglected;  but  the  best  of  all,  God  is  with  us. 

The  power  of  God  is  gloriously  manifested  at  our  quarterly 
meetings  in  the  salvation  of  sinners.  Four  hundred  accessions 
to  the  Church,  and  about  the  same  number  of  conversions  since 
Conference!  Spring  Hill  has  been  blessed  with  a  glorious  re- 
vival of  religion.  Our  quarterly  meeting  for  that  circuit  result- 
ed in  thirty-two  accessions.  They  were  in  debt  five  hundred  dol- 
lars for  their  church,  which  we  had  the  good  fortune  to  raise, 
Brother  James  Wynn  giving  one  hundred  dollars,  the  debt  being 
due  him.  Brother  Cope,  the  preacher  in  charge,  is  the  right 
man  in  the  right  place. 

Brother  Shores,  of  Gallatin  Circuit,  will  soon  have  our  new 
church  in  Breckenridge  completed.  His  charge  is  in  a  good  con- 
dition. Brother  Penny,  of  Kingston  Mission,  is  laboring  earnestly 
and  looking  anxiously  for  the  fruit  of  his  labors.  The  Church  at 
Millville,  under  the  judicious  care  of  Brother  Alexander,  is  ad- 
vancing. Brother  Dines,  of  Richmond  Station,  is  preaching  to 
large  and  attentive  congregations;  and  Sister  Dines  is  visiting 
and  praying  with  the  membership.  Brother  Blakey,  of  Camden 
Circuit,  is  working  faithfully  in  the  Lord's  vineyard.  May  God 
bless  him  and  his  good  people! 

Carrollton  Circuit  is  doing  well.  Brother  Devlin  labors  ear- 
nestly and  faithfully,  day  and  night,  all  the  time,  and  his  labors 
are  rewarded  with  a  revival  almost  at  every  appointment.  The 
energetic  Carlyle,  of  Milan  Circuit,  is  not  idle,  but  is  extending 
his  borders  along  the  Iowa  line.  More  than  one  hundred  persons 
have  been  added  to  the  Church  in  the  bounds  of  his  work  since 
Conference. 

Brother  S.  S.  Hardin  will  take  charge  of  Lineville  Circuit. 
This  new  field  of  labor  promises  well.  Chillicothe  Mission  is 
moving  forward  successfully  under  the  efficient  labors  of  the  pas- 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  293 

tor,  Brother  Jordan.     Brother  Warren  is  addressing  himself  to 
the  work  of  Linneus  Circuit  with  a  hearty  good-will. 

Chillicothe  Station,  with  Brother  Miller  as  pastor,  is  prosper- 
ing. His  congregations  are  large  and  appreciative,  and  he  is 
working  and  praying  for  a  gracious  revival. 

REV.  E.  K.  MILLER. 

The  reader  will  no  doubt  be  highly  interested  in 
the  following  sketch  of  the  ministerial  life  and  work 
of  one  whose  career  has  been  characterized  by 
great  success  and  usefulness,  and  whose  genial 
nature  and  noble  character  have  given  him  a  high 
and  influential  position  in  the  Church.  Yes,  one, 
among  others,  of  whom  Missouri  may  well  be  proud 
— ay,  proud  of  being  the  country  in  which  such 
men  were  born  and  raised.  But  read  the  sketch, 
written  by  himself: 

I  was  licensed  to  preach  by  the  Quarterly  Conference  of  Paris 
Circuit,  at  Spencer  Chapel,  May,  1851,  Rev.  Jacob  Lannius,  pre- 
siding elder.  Preached  my  first  sermon  one  week  later,  at  the  old 
town  of  Clinton,  Monroe  County.  By  the  same  Conference  I  was 
recommended  to  the  traveling  connection,  and  was  admitted  on 
trial  in  the  Missouri  Conference  of  1851,  at  Fayette,  Bishop  Capers 
presiding.  The  last  official  act  of  my  presiding  elder,  Rev.  J.  Lan- 
nius, was  the  presentation  of  my  recommendation.  He  was  taken 
sick  soon  after,  and  died  within  a  week  from  the  adjournment  of 
Conference.  He  was  a  great  and  good  man,  but  was  cut  down  in 
the  prime  of  life  and  in  the  midst  of  great  usefulness,  at  the  age 
of  37  years. 

I  was  appointed  junior  preacher  on  the  Columbia  Circuit.  Rev. 
R.  P.  Holt  was  preacher  in  charge.  He  still  lives,  though  in  "age 
and  feebleness  extreme."  My  association  with  him  and  his  kind 
family  was  interruptedly  pleasant  and  profitable  to  me.  It  was 
most  fortunate  for  the  young  preacher  that  he  was  placed  under 
the  care  of  so  good  and  true  a  man.  After  the  death  of  Brother 
Lannius,  Brother  A.  Monroe  was  appointed  to  the  Columbia  Dis- 
trict. This  was  my  first  acquaintance  with  this  great  and  good 


294  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

man.  It  was  the  beginning  of  an  acquaintance  which  ripened, 
notwithstanding  our  great  disparity  in  age,  into  great  affection 
and  intimacy.  I  learned  to  love  him  greatly,  and  to  reverence 
him  as  I  did  no  other  man.  He  was  indeed  a  true  father  in  Israel 
to  me  to  the  end  of  his  life.  More  than  to  any  other  man  Mis- 
souri Methodism  is  indebted  to  Rev.  A.  Monroe  for  laying  the 
foundations  of  our  Church,  deep  and  strong,  all  over  this  great 
State.  A  great  preacher,  for  those  early  times — indeed  for  any 
period — sound  in  doctrine,  eminently  wise  in  counsel,  indefatiga- 
ble in  labor,  he  did  what  should  be  done  to  build  up  and  establish 
Methodism  in  Missouri. 

The  Columbia  Circuit  at  that  time  embraced  the  whole  of 
Boone  County,  except  Rocheport,  which  is  now  Columbia  Sta- 
tion. Ashland  Circuit,  Mount  Zion  Circuit,  and  the  country  em- 
braced by  Sturgeon  and  Centralia  were  all  included  in  that  first 
circuit.  There  were  no  railroads  then,  and  no  towns  except  Co- 
lumbia. I  preached  regularly  at  old  Brother  Roberts's,  on  whose 
farm  the  present  town  of  Ashland  was  located.  I  had  appoint- 
ments in  the  country,  near  where  the  towns  of  Sturgeon  and 
Centralia  are  now  located. 

The  year,  on  the  whole,  was  a  very  pleasant  and  profitable  one 
to  me.  The  people,  except  a  few  at  the  beginning,  were  very 
kind  to  the  young  preacher.  They  encouraged  and  helped  him 
in  his  weakness  and  unworthiness.  Many  precious  names  come 
up  before  me  while  I  write.  I  cannot  forbear  to  mention  a  f (.  \v 
of  them — some  still  living,  others  have  passed  on  before.  There 
is  Brother  McAlister,  at  whose  home  I  found  shelter  and  en- 
couragement when  I  first  came  to  the  circuit.  He  still  lives,  the 
patriarch  of  Methodism  in  Columbia.  His  faithful  wife  went  to 
heaven  only  a  year  ago,  full  of  years  and  ripe  in  Christian  char- 
acter and  experience.  It  was  my  privilege,  after  thirty  years,  to 
be  pastor  again  at  Columbia,  where  I  found  these  and  a  few  others 
of  the  old  members  to  greet  me,  now  among  the  old  men  of  the 
Conference.  Then  there  was  D.  B.  Cunningham,  near  Nashville, 
still  living,  and  his  children  all  living  and  in  the  Church.  Then 
there  was  J.  H.  McNeill's,  the  home  of  the  young  preacher,  and  his 
precious  wife,  then  an  invalid.  I  owe  much  to  that  consecrated 
woman — to  her  prayers,  her  counsels,  and  her  words  of  encour- 
agement, when  I  was  ready  to  give  up  in  despair  and  yield  to  the 
temptation  to  give  up  the  ministry.  She  still  lives  in  Davies  Coun- 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  295 

ty  with  her  children — the  same  holy,  Christian  woman.  Moses  U. 
Payne  lived  in  the  bounds  of  this  circuit.  He  was  a  great  help 
in  many  ways  to  the  young  preacher.  No  truer  man  to  the 
Church!  He  still  lives,  and  is  known  throughout  the  Church  for 
his  devotion  to  Southern  Methodism— famous  for  his  large  liber- 
ality and  sterling  Christian  character.  One  other  name  I  must 
mention — that  of  Brother  John  Reed,  who  was  a  member  of  Mount 
Zion,and  is  still  a  member  at  that  place.  He  is  now  nearly  nine- 
ty years  of  age.  A  grand  old  Rorn^n,  he  has  always  been  true, 
and  for  scores  of  years  has  been  a  tower  of  strength  in  the 
Church.  Many  others  I  could  mention,  but  space  forbids.  Their 
names  are  in  the  book  of  life. 

In  the  fall  of  1852  the  Conference  met  at  St.  Joseph.  The 
journey  from  Columbia  to  the  seat  of  the  Conference,  a  distance 
of  two  hundred  miles,  was  made  on  horseback.  Bishop  Paine 
presided  over  the  session  of  the  Conference.  It  was  here  I 
first  saw  the  now  venerable  Dr.  McAnally,  and  heard  him 
preach.  It  was  his  first  visit  to  our  Conference.  Dr.  Sehon, 
the  Missionary  Secretary,  was  present.  At  this  Conference  I 
was  sent  to  Edina  Circuit,  Rev.  A.  Monroe,  presiding  elder. 
This  circuit  then  embraced  the  whole  of  Knox  County,  with 
appointments  in  every  adjoining  county,  extending  from  Emer- 
son, Marion  County,  to  Sandhill,  Scotland  County,  and  from 
Lewis  to  Macon  Counties  east  and  west.  It  was  a  three-weeks 
circuit,  with  appointments  for  every  day  in  the  week  except 
Monday ;  and  from  two  to  three  appointments  every  Sabbath. 
These  appointments  were  from  six  to  ten  miles  apart.  This  was 
a  grand  field.  The  country  was  new,  the  people  hospitable  and 
kind,  and  generally  disposed  to  hear  the  word  preached,  and 
we  had  some  very  gracious  revivals.  At  Newark  there  were  a 
great  many  Universalists.  Rev.  W.  M.  Rugh  assisted  me  at  the 
meeting,  preached  a  series  of  sermons  against  universalism 
with  telling  effect.  Six  leading  Universalists  of  the  town  and 
vicinity  came  to  the  altar  of  prayer  at  one  time;  were  con- 
verted, and  became  members  of  the  Church.  At  Sandhill 
we  had  a  glorious  meeting.  One  of  the  converts  of  this  meet- 
ing was  George  Primrose,  who  subsequently  joined  the  Mis- 
souri Conference  and  afterward  distinguished  himself  as  chap- 
lain in  the  Southern  army,  by  his  labors  in  the  hospitals  and 
looking  after  the  sick  and  wounded  and  dying,  until  his  name 


296  Methodism  in  Mtssotiri.  1867-6$. 

throughout  his  division  was  the  synonym  for  self-sacrifice  and 
tender,  loving  care  for  the  suffering  soldiers.  He  and  his  good 
wife  have  long  since  entered  into  rest. 

After  a  delightful  pastorate  of  two  years  on  the  Edina  Cir- 
cuit, I  was  sent  to  Canton.  This  was  a  new  station,  organized 
perhaps  the  year  before.  Rev.  R.  H.Jordan  was  my  presiding 
elder.  Rev.  A.  Monroe  had  been  sent  to  take  charge  of  our  new 
mission  field  in  Kansas.  Canton  at  this  time  was  a  flourishing 
young  town,  a  place  of  considerable  importance.  La  Grange, 
seven  miles  below,  was  also  a  station,  and  at  that  time  was  one 
of  the  most  flourishing  towns  on  the  river.  A  place  of  great 
wealth,  where  our  Church  was  strong  at  that  time.  Rev.  H.  M. 
Turner  was  appointed  to  this  charge.  Two  months  afterward 
he  died,  and  I  was  with  him  during  most  of  his  sickness,  heard 
his  last  testimony,  and  closed  his  eyes  and  laid  him  away  to 
rest.  He  was  a  good  man  and  died  in  great  peace.  After  the 
death  of  Brother  Turner  the  two  charges,  La  Grange  and  Can- 
ton, were  united  and  I  was  put  in  charge  of  both.  It  seemed 
the  best  that  could  be  done,  but  the  demands  of  each  place  were 
too  great  to  be  met  by  such  a  division  of  labor.  The  result  was 
not  very  satisfactory,  though  the  year  passed  very  pleasantly 
and  with  some  success. 

In  the  fall  of  1855  the  Conference  met  at  Richmond,  Bishop 
Early  presiding.  This  wras  his  first  visit  to  the  West.  He  was 
a  rigid  parliamentarian,  and  to  our  free  and  easy  Western  men 
he  was  almost  a  terror  for  the  first  day  or  two  of  the  Confer- 
ence. The  drill  was  needed,  however,  and  we  soon  learned  to 
admire  the  courtly  man  and  love  him  for  his  earnest  Christian 
spirit.  Bishop  Early  was  a  great  man,  and  unique  as  great.  He 
was  born  to  rule.  In  political  life  he  would  have  taken  a  high 
position,  and  been  a  Jeader  in  the  State,  as  he  was  for  so  long  a 
period  in  the  Church. 

At  the  close  of  this  Conference  I  was  sent  to  Shelby ville 
Circuit.  This  circuit  then  embraced  most  of  Shelby  County, 
with  two  appointments  in  Marion,  Andrew  Chapel,  and  Phila- 
delphia. The  Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  railroad  had  not  been 
built.  Shelbina,  Clarence,  and  Hunnewell  were  not  in  exist- 
ence. But  the  entire  county  was  traveled  over  bv  the  preach- 
ers of  the  Shelbyville  Circuit,  and  in  every  neighborhood  we 
had  an  appointment  and  class-meeting.  Shelbina,  Clarence, 


1867-68.  •  Missouri  Conference.  297 

'Novelty,  Hunnewell,  and  Philadelphia  Circuits  are  now  com- 
•posed  largely  of  the  territory,  with  many  of  the  surviving  mem- 
bers, of  that  old  circuit.  Rev.  Joab  Spencer  was  my  junior 
preacher  this  year— his  first  year  in  the  ministry.  He  was  an 
admirable  young  man,  and  our  association  was  of  the  most 
pleasant  character — the  beginning  of  an  affectionate  friendship, 
that  has  continued  to  this  day,  growing  and  strengthening  with 
the  passing  years.  This  year  was  one  of  the  happiest  and  most 
successful  of  my  ministry.  Many  hundreds  were  converted 
and  added  to  the  Church.  Had  many  gracious  revivals  at  many 
points  on  the  circuit,  notably  at  Shelbyville,  Philadelphia,  B. 
Chapel,  North  River  Camp,  and  a  point  not  very  far  from  the 
present  town  of  Hunnewell.  Many  of  the  converts  of  this 
meeting  are  still  living,  and  many  have  fallen  asleep.  Quite  a 
number  now  on  the  roll  of  the  itinerancy  were  members  of  mv 
charge  at  that  time — E.  M.  Bounds,  W.  W.  McMurry,  J.  R. 
Taylor,  and  the  young  brothers,  Frank  and  James  Taylor,  little 
boys  then,  were  practicing  for  the  itinerancy,  by  looking  after 
the  preacher's  horse  and  running  down  the  yellow-legged  chick- 
'ens  when  the  preacher  came  to  the  hospitable  home  of  their 
father,  one  of  the  stanchest  Methodists  and  best  of  men,  with 
a  Christian  wife,  his  equal  in  goodness  and  devotion  to  the 
Church.  There  too  was  J.  B.  Short,  the  companion  of  Mc- 
Murry, who  entered  the  ministry  and  went  as  a  preacher  to 
Oregon,  and  died  soon  after  in  the  triumphs  of  faith.  He  was  a 
young  man  of  great  promise.  His  short  ministry  in  Oregon 
made  a  profound  impression,  and  the  brilliant  young  Missourian 
is  remembered  in  that  far  off  land  by  many  to  this  day.  There 
were  so  many  names  of  good  and  true  men  and  women  of  that 
circuit  at  that  time  of  whom  I  would  gladly  speak:  the  Mar- 
madukes,  the  Cottons,  Dines,  Ralphs,  the  saintly  Sigler,  for 
many  years  a  traveling  preacher,  until  failing  health  compelled 
him  to  retire;  Dr.  Irwin,  good  and  true,  and  his  Christian  wife; 
the  Shackelfords,  the  Hollidays,  the  Vandivers,  the  Lyells,  and 
a  host  of  others,  all  good  and  true,  whose  names  are  in  the 
book  of  life.  Indeed,  our  Church  was  composed  of  the  best 
material  of  the  country,  and  as  the  result,  then  as  now,  Meth- 
odism dominated  that  entire  country.  My  brief  pastorate  of 
the  Shelbwille  Circuit  was  one  of  the  brighest  years  of  my 
itinerant  life. 


298  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

In  the  fall  of  1856  the  Conference  met  at  Louisiana.  Bishop 
Pierce  presided.  This  was  his  first  visit  to  the  Missouri  Con- 
ference. He  was  at  the  height  of  his  fame,  and  he  more  than 
met  the  expectation  of  the  people  and  the  members  of  the  Con- 
ference. His  sermon  on  the  Sabbath  of  the  Conference  was 
'absolutely  overwhelming,  literally  swept  every  thing  before  it. 
Saint  and  sinner  mingled  in  one  promiscuous  shout  of  praise  to 
God.  Never  before,  nor  since,  have  I  witnessed  such  an  effect 
upon  an  audience. 

At  this  Conference  I  was  sent  to  St.  Joseph,  very  unexpect- 
edly to  me  and  the  good  people  of  Shelbyville.  Bishop  Pierce 
was  then,  and  continued  to  be  as  long  as  he  lived,  a  one-year 
man,  and  believed  in  frequent  changes.  For  that  early  time, 
it  was  perhaps  wise  and  generally  for  the  best;  but  times  and 
circumstances  have  greatly  changed,  and  what  was  then  wise 
policy  would,  as  a  general  rule,  be  unwise  policy  now. 

I  went  to  my  new  and  responsible  charge  with  fear  and 
trembling.  The  entire  distance  of  two  hundred  miles  across 
the  State,  with  wife  and  little  one,  was  made  by  private  con- 
veyance. What  a  change  since  then!  I  was  cordially  received, 
and  had  two  verv  prosperous  and  happy  years.  The  Lord  was 
with  me  in  blessings  upon  my  own  soul  and  my  unworthy 
ministry.  We  then  occupied  the  old  brick  church  at  the  cor- 
ner of  Felix  and  Third  Streets.  The  first  year  we  had  a  glo- 
rious revival  in  the  old  house.  There  were,  as  well  as  I  re- 
member, about  sixty  conversions  and  additions  to  the  Church. 
Some  of  the  converts  of  that  meeting  are  still  members,  good 
and  true:  some  in  Francis  Street  Church  and  some  in  Tenth 
Street  charge.  One  is  in  the  ministry,  Rev.  Henry  Kay,  of  the 
Missouri  Conference,  the  son  of  James  Kay,  who  is  now  a 
member  of  Francis  Street  Church,  and  who  has  been  for  forty 
years  a  strong  pillar  of  our  cause  in  St.  Joseph.  Also  a  young 
man  whose  name  escapes  me,  but  who,  as  I  learn,  became  a 
Presbyterian  minister. 

In  1857  the  old  church  was  sold  and  the  site  of  Francis  Street 
Church  was  selected.  The  ground  was  donated  by  Rev.  J.  T. 
Hoagland  for  that  purpose,  and  in  the  fall  and  winter  of  1857-58 
the  present  church  was  erected.  We  moved  into  the  basement 
the  first  Sabbath  in  March,  1858,  and  continued  to  occupy  it 
during  the  rest  of  the  year.  The  audience-room  was  finished 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  299 

on  the  inside  the  following  year,  under  the  ministry  of  Rev.  N. 
G.  Berryman,  and  was  dedicated  in  the  summer  of  1858  by  Rev. 
R.  A.  Young,  now  and  for  many  years  at  Nashville,  Tenn. 
Even  at  that  early  date  the  Church  was  strong  in  membership 
and  piety.  It  was  then,  and  has  always  been,  a  very  spiritual 
Church.  Many  of  the  best  and  most  solid  and  intelligent  men 
and  women  of  the  city  constitute  the  membership.  It  was  then 
the  leading  Church  of  the  city,  and  to  this  day  Southern  Meth- 
odism is  the  prominent  Protestant  Church  of  St.  Joseph,  in  the 
spirituality  and  number  of  its  members  and  the  size  of  its  con- 
gregations. 'This  is  to  be  attributed  largely  to  the  character  of 
its  membership  in  that  early  period.  With  such  men  as  G.  T. 
Hoagland,  Kay,  Kemper,  Vories,  Heaton,  Brittain,  Jennings, 
and  a  host  of  others  just  as  true  and  good,  it  is  no  wonder  that 
the  Church  commanded  the  confidence  of  the  community  and 
was  firmly  established  and  grew  to  be  a  mighty  power  for  good. 
At  the  close  of  my  delightful  pastorate  in  St.  Joseph  I  was 
sent  by  the  Conference  at  Chillicothe  to  the  Savannah  District. 
This  was  not  to  my  liking.  I  always  shrunk  from  that  respon- 
sibility. But  I  accepted  the  situation  and  went  cheerfully  to 
my  appointment.  This  district  embraced  what  are  now 
eleven  counties — from  the  Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  railroad, 
and  considerably  south  of  it,  up  north  to  the  Iowa  line,  and  from 
east  of  the  Grand  River  to  the  western  boundary  of  the  State — 
with  appointments  ranging  from  forty  to  fifty  miles  apart.  As 
I  had  no  family,  I  lived  mostly  on  the  district,  traveling  and 
holding  meetings.  I  traveled  on  horseback,  reaching  my  ap- 
pointments usually  on  Thursday  or  Friday  night;  then  preach- 
ing continuously  until  time  to  leave  for  my  next  quarterly  meet- 
ing, to  begin  the  same  routine  of  labor.  Not  unfrequently  I 
would  leave  appointments  at  school  and  private  houses  by  the 
way.. 

This  was  continued,  with  only  a  little  respite  now  and  then, 
during  the  yeaY,  with  several  camp-meetings  during  the  sum- 
mer, which  required  extra  labor  and  responsibility.  The  result 
was,  though  possessed  of  a  strong  constitution,  my  health  gave 
way,  and  I  went  to  Conference  quite  broken  down.  The  year, 
however,  was  a  glorious  one.  The  preachers  in  the  main  were 
faithful,  and  the  Lord  greatly  blessed  the  year's  work  in  all 
parts  of  the  district.  At  the  close  of  this  year  a  new  district 


3ao  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

—the  Gallatin — was  formed,  composed  of  the  eastern  portion  of 
the  old  Savannah  District  and  a  portion  of  the  district  lying  to 
the  east.  I  would  be  glad  to  mention  the  names  of  the  faithful 
preachers,  my  co-laborers  during  that  year.  Of  the  entire 
number,  I  believe  I  am  the  only  one  now  in  the  Conference. 
Rev.  B.  R.  Baxter,  a  k>cal  preacher,  is  in  Oregon,  Dr.  W.G. 
Miller,  now  pastor  of  First  Church,  Memphis,  Tenn.  His  junior 
colleague,  R.  R.  Baldwin,  is  a  member  of  the  South  Indiana 
Conference,  M.  E.  Church.  How  sweet  the  memory  of  my 
association  with  those  brethren!  How  I  loved  them,  and  it  is 
pleasant  to  think  that  it  was  mutual.  Then  there  was  the  saintly 
and  true  "  Father  Ketron,"  as  we  loved  to  call  him.  Early  in 
the  war  he  went  to  heaven.  It  is  a  joyous  thought  that  I  shall 
meet  all  those  faithful  co-laborers  of  that  year  of  toil  in  the  gen- 
eral assembly  and  Church  of  the  First-born  in  heaven. 

The  Conference  of  1859  was  held  in  St.  Joseph.  Bishop 
Paine  was  again  with  us.  I  was  relieved  from  the  district  and 
sent  to  Hannibal,  where  I  succeeded  that  faithful  man  of  God, 
Rev.  C.  I.  Van  Deventer,  who  had  been  in  charge  two  years. 
These  two  years  were  very  fruitful.  My  faithful  predecessor 
had  labored  earnestly,  sown  good  seed,  and  watered  it  with  his 
tears,  and  secured  heaven's  blessings  upon  it  with  his  prayers. 
I  found  the  harvest  ready  for  the  reaper.  I  never  felt  more 
sensiblv  the  truth  and  force  of  the  words:  "one  soweth  and 
another  reapeth."  And  while  I  entered  into  his  labors  he  re- 
joiced with  me  in  the  gracious  harvest  of  souls.  I  had  in  him, 
as  my  presiding  elder,  every  help  and  encouragement  in  his 
power  to  give.  He  will  let  me  thank  God  and  him  after  all 
these  years  in  this  way  for  his  timely  courtesy  and  kindness 
and  the  great  help  he  gave  me  during  my  pastorate,  and  above 
all  for  our  sweet,  Christian  fellowship  and  that  mutual  affection 
then  enkindled,  and  which  has  not  lessened  by  the  lapse  of 
years. 

The  work  of  grace  during  the  first  six  months  of  my  pastor- 
ate at  Hannibal  was  the  most  wonderful  that  T  have  ever  wit- 
nessed. The  entire  city  was  under  a  deep  religious  awakening. 
Everv  Protestant  Church  caught  the  sacred  fire  and  large  num- 
bers were  converted — many  in  the  houses  of  worship,  many  on 
the  streets,  some  in  their  counting-rooms  and  places  of  busi- 
ness, and  a  great  many  in  their  homes.  Between  four  and  five 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  301 

hundred  souls  were  converted  and  added  to  the  different 
Churches.  To  our  Church  about  one  hundred  and  sixty  were 
added.  It  was  one  of  the  most  genuine  revivals  of  religion 
that  I  have  ever  known,  and  the  results  were  largely  perma- 
nent. 

It  would  seem  that  the  Lord  was  specially  blessing  his  peo- 
ple to  prepare  them  for  the  fiery  ordeal  through  which  they  were 
so  soon  to  pass.  The  results  of  that  meeting,  the  full  measure 
of  good  accomplished,  eternity  alone  can  reveal. 

It  was  soon  after  the  close  of  this  meeting  that  the  question 
of  a  new  church  was  agitated,  and  but  for  the  war  which  soon 
followed  it  would  most  likely  have  been  built.  The  result  of 
this,  could  it  have  been  done  at  that  time,  or  immediately  after 
the  war,  would  have  been  to  secure  a  much  more  satisfactory 
future  for  our  Church  at  Hannibal.  We  doubtless  lost  much 
by  failing  to  build  a  commodious  and  attractive  house  of  wor- 
ship at  the  proper  time.  If  the  present  beautiful  church  had 
been  erected  twenty  years  sooner,  we  would  to-day  doubtless  be 
far  in  advance  of  what  we  are.  We  have  a  good  church  and 
congregation  still,  but  it  is  scarcely  as  strong  as  it  was  twenty- 
five  years  ago.  In  many  places  in  our  Connection  we  have 
fallen  behind  and  lost  prestige  from  the  same  cause. 

The  last  year  of  my  pastorate  in  Hannibal  was  interrupted  by 
the  war.  Hannibal  became  a  military  camp,  and  a  reign  of  ter- 
ror was  inaugurated  which  put  a  stop  to  all  active  Church  oper- 
ations. I  was,  however,  permitted  to  pursue  my  labors  unmo- 
lested in  any  direct  way,  until  the  close  of  the  year.  For  some 
reason  all  Southern  Methodist  preachers  were  regarded  with 
suspicion,  and  as  in  some  sort  and  in  some  way  connected  with 
secession  and  the  Southern  side  of  the  war.  This  grew  out  of 
ignorance  in  a  large  measure,  in  regard  to  the  history  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  and  the  distinctive  features  and  economy  of 
that  Church.  Even  Gen.  Rosecrans,  when  approached  by  a 
committee  to  know  why  he  exacted  of  the  ministers  assembled 
as  a  Conference  at  St.  Louis  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance, 
when  no  other  religious  body  was  required  to  do  so,  replied: 
"  Because  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  was  organized  in  the 
interest  of  the  rebellion."  The  venerable  Dr.  Boyle,  one  of  the 
committee,  said-  to  him ;  "  That  cannot  be,  general,  because  the 
Southern  Methodist  Church  has  been  in  existence  since  1845 — 


302  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

organized  sixteen  years  before  the  war."  The  general  was  as- 
tonished, confessed  his  ignorance  in  relation  to  the  matter,  and 
that  he  understood  that  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  was 
organized  after  the  war  began  in  the  direct  interest  of  the  re- 
bellion. "Certainly,"  he  said,  "the  order  shall  be  revoked,  and 
you  will  be  protected  so  long  as  you  obey  the  authorities  of  the 
government."  How  many  intelligent  men  like  Gen.  Rosecrans 
are  to  this  day  ignorant  of  the  true  status  and  history  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South! 

In  the  fall  of  1861  the  Conference  met  at  Glasgow.  Having 
no  bishop,  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples  was  made  President.  The  whole 
country  was  in  confusion  and  in  a  state  of  great  excitement. 
The  Conference  held  its  session,  however,  without  hinderance 
or  interruption,  and  adjourned  on  Monday  night. 

I  was  read  out  for  Chillicothe.  W'thin  a  week  I  was  at  my 
new  field  of  labor,  and  found  the  town  a  vast  military  encamp- 
ment. Every  church  closed  and  without  a  pastor,  except  mv 
own.  On  my  first  Sabbath  and  subsequently  my  own  church 
was  mostly  filled  with  soldiers.  I  did  the  best  I  could  to  look 
after  and  gather  my  scattered  flock  and  hold  the  Church  togeth- 
er. Though  a  Southern  man  with  Southern  sympathies,  I  felt 
that  I  had  a  mission  to  all  and  a  message  from  God  to  the  sol- 
diers. I  preached  to  them,  went  among  them  in  their  camps, 
held  prayer-meetings,  visited  their  sick  in  the  hospitals,  and 
did  what  I  could  for  their  spiritual  good.  I  was  greatly  blessed 
in  my  own  soul,  and  I  trust  was  made  a  humble  instrument  of 
some  good  to  them.  I  made  friends  with  them,  and  the  Lord 
inclined  them  kindly  to  my  ministry.  They  were  regular 
troops,  made  up  of  the  better  elements  of  other  States.  From 
them  I  never  received  other  than  the  kindest  courtesy  and  def- 
erence to  my  calling  and  character  as  a  minister.  Toward  the 
latter  part  of  the  winter,  however,  the  Missouri  militia  took 
the  place  of  the  regular  troops.  As  generally  throughout  the 
State,  so  in  Chillicothe,  the  greatest  trouble,  persecution,  and 
cruelty  experienced  by  the  people  were  from  these  State  mili- 
tia. As  the  regular  troops  from  other  States  were  of  the  best 
element,  these  militia,  on  the  contrary,  Avere  of  the  very  lowest 
and  worst  elements  of  this  State.  I  have  reason  to  know  that 
they  were  held  in  utter  contempt  by  the  regular  soldiers. 

On  the  first  Sabbath  in  March,  1862,  on  going  to  church,  I 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  303 

found  a  great  mob  of  militia  about  the  door,  and  as  I  entered 
the  church  they  followed  me  in  a  most  disorderly  manner; 
while  I  was  kneeling  in  prayer  they  nailed  the  flag  to  the  pul- 
pit, swearing  at  the  same  time  that  I  should  preach  under  the 
flag  or  I  should  not  preach  at  all.  What  did  they  care  for  the 
flag  or  for  the  country  ?  The  Lord  was  with  me  most  graciously 
that  day.  I  had  no  fear  and  unusual  liberty  in  trying  to  preach 
from  the  text:  "Seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God."  He  who  re- 
strained the  lions  from  harm  to  Daniel  restrained  these  men. 
The  service  was  undisturbed,  and  we  returned  to  our  homes  in 
peace. 

About  this  time  I  received  a  letter  from  Brother  A.  Monroe 
urging  me  to  attend  the  General  Conference,  which  was  to 
meet  in  New  Orleans  in  May,  1862.  Of  all  the  delegates, 
seven  in  number,  not  one  could  attend.  I  was  only  an  alternate, 
but  I  was  alone — my  two  children  provided  for;  and  he  thought 
I  could  be  absent  indefinitely  without  too  great  a  sacrifice.  He 
urged  that  it  was  absolutely  essential  to  the  safety  of  the  Church 
in  Missouri  that  we  have  one  representative  at  the  General 
Conference.  He  feared  that  in  the  heat  of  excitement,  as  the 
Church  was  largely  within  the  bounds  of  the  Confederacy,  thev 
might  possiblv  take  some  hastv  action  that  would  commit  the 
Church  as  such  to  the  Southern  Confederacv,  which  would 
have  effectually  destroved  our  Church  in  Missouri.  Coming 
from  such  a  man,  his  strong  arguments  and  earnest  solicita- 
tion produced  the  conviction  in  my  mind  that  it  was  perhaps 
my  duty  to  go.  I  was  entirely  averse  to  going  under  the  cir- 
cumstances. However  pleasant  it  might  be  to  attend  General 
Conference  in  time  of  peace,  it  was  any  thing  else  than  pleas- 
ant in  time  of  civil  war.  But  I  felt  that  duty  called  and  the 
safety  of  the  Church  demanded  the  sacrifice.  After  earnest 
prayer,  I  replied  that  I  would  go.  I  put  the  Church  at  Chilli- 
cothe  in  charge  of  Rev.  W.  T.  Ellington,  who  was  teaching 
there  at  that  time.  I  quietly  left  Chillicothe  and  went  to  the 
house  of  my  father  near  Hannibal  to  make  preparation  for  the 
perilous  trip.  Application  was  made  to  the  military  authorities 
for  permission  to  pass  the  Federal  lines,  the  object  of  my  trip 
being  clearly  stated.  They  not  only  refused  to  let  me  pass,  but 
positively  forbade  my  going.  I  determined  to  obey  God,  to  serve 
him  and  his  Church,  rather  than  man.  My  father  gave  me  a 


304  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

fine  mule  for  the  trip,  and  equipped  as  well  as  circumstances 
would  permit,  armed  only  with  a  small  pocket  Bible,  I  set  out 
all  alone  on  my  dangerous  journey.  I  believed  that  it  was 
God's  will  and  that  he  would  take  care  of  me,  and  most  won- 
derfully was  his  protecting  hand  seen  and  felt  all  the  way 
through.  After  a  continous  journey,  muleback,  of  fifteen  days 
— a  journey  of  hair-breadth  escapes  and  most  striking  exhibi- 
tions of  God's  special  providence — I  reached  Batesville,  Ark.  I 
there  learned  that  the  General  Conference  had  been  post- 
poned indefinitely.  My  special  mission  was  at  an  end.  What 
next  to  do  was  the  question.  I  could  but  wait  and  let  God  di- 
rect. I  was  offered  a  chaplaincy  in  the  army  and  urged  to  take 
it.  I  tried  to  pray  over  the  matter,  but  could  not  feel  that  my 
line  of  duty  led  in  that  direction.  I  may  have  been  mistaken 
in  this,  but  I  honestly  tried  to  follow  the  leadings  of  Provi- 
dence. After  two  or  three  weeks  in  Batesville  and  some  other 
points  preaching  and  waiting,  I  finally  decided  to  return  to 
Missouri;  and  did  so  under  the  belief — which  seems  unreason- 
able to  me  now  in  the  light  of  subsequent  experience — that  I 
would  be  permitted  to  resume  my  work  as  a  minister  of  the 
gospel  of  peace,  unmolested.  On  my  return  I  was  arrested  in 
Boone  County,  by  the  militia,  on  the  2oth  of  May ;  was  taken  to 
Jefferson  City,  where  I  remained  for  over  two  months  in  a  most 
loathsome  prison — a  room  sixteen  by  eighteen  feet,  into  which 
from  twenty-five  to  thirty-five  prisoners  were  crowded.  You 
may  imagine  our  condition  during  the  hot  weather  of  June  and 
July.  I  was  tried  by  a  militarv  commission,  charged  with  hav- 
ing run  the  blockade,  and  being  in  hostility  to  the  United  States 
government.  What  the  verdict  of  that  commission  was  I 
never  knew.  On  the  first  of  August  I,  with  many  others,  was 
sent  to  Gratiot  Street  Prison,  in  St.  Louis,  the  old  McDowell 
College,  and  on  the  yth  we  were  sent  to  Alton,  where  I  re- 
mained until  toward  the  last  of  January,  1863. 

Of  my  prison  experience  I  will  not  write  in  detail.  No  tongue 
can  tell,  no  pen  can  describe  or  give  an  adequate  expression  to 
the  suffering  and  misery  that  I  endured.  In  the  inclosure  of  the 
old  penitentiary  grounds  at  Alton  there  are  perhaps  two  or  three 
acres  not  occupied  by  buildings.  There  were  in  this  inclosure 
from  fifteen  hundred  to  twentv-fiVe  hundred  prisoners.  The 
fare  was  meager  and  miserable,  the  water  was  deadly,  and  the 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  305 

poor  prisoners  died  by  the  hundred.  I  addressed  myself,  as 
far  as  I  was  able,  to  the  work  of  caring  for  the  sick.  I  sought 
and  obtained  a  position  in  the  hospital  for  this  purpose,  and  as 
best  I  could  administered  to  the  spiritual  wants  of  the  sick  and 
dying.  I  never  felt  more  of  the  presence  and  sustaining  power 
of  God  than  during  these  months.  My  very  prison  was  made  a 
palace  by  the  presence  and  comfort  of  Jesus.  It  seemed  clear  to 
me  that  God  was  in  it  all,  that  my  very  imprisonment  was  of  his 
ordering,  that  I  might  minister  the  consolations  of  the  gospel  to 
these  suffering  thousands.  No  part  of  my  life,  as  I  look  back 
upon  it  now,  has  yielded  me  such  sweet  satisfaction  as  those 
months  of  prison  life  and  suffering.  I  realized  too  that,  terrible 
as  was  the  experience,  it  was  my  personal  safety,  and  that  I  was 
thereby  no  doubt  preserved  from  the  deadly  assassin,  by  whom 
so  many  were  cruelly  murdered  during  that  dark  time.  Cer- 
tainly God  was  in  it  all. 

After  three  months  of  labor  in  the  hospital,  and  great  personal 
suffering,  I  too'was  brought  down  bv  a  lingering  chronic  dis- 
ease. My  life  was  despaired  of.  Through  the  efforts  of  friends 
I  was  paroled  to  the  city,  and  taken  to  a  quiet  boarding-house  to 
die,  as  it  was  thought.  But  God  ordered  it  otherwise.  I  began 
after  a  time  slowly  to  recover,  and  after  some  two  months  was  in 
a  measure  restored  to  health.  Through  the  intervention  of  some 
influential  friends  I  was  at  last  released  by  a  special  order  from 
President  Lincoln,  and  was  once  more  a  free  man.  I  returned 
to  the  home  of  my  father  near  Hannibal,  and  as  I  had  opportu- 
nity preached  at  different  points  in  the  surrounding  country  dur- 
ing the  spring  and  summer  of  1863.  On  my  return  home  a 
friend,  who  was  a  member  of  the  Union  League,  had  said  to  me: 
"  Be  quiet  and  careful  and  make  yourself  easy.  If  any  danger 
threatens  you,  I  will  know  it  and  give  you  warning."  I  was  the 
subject  of  constant,  very  unpleasant,  and  annoying  surveillance 
from  the  militia,  but  I  spent  the  spring  and  summer  without  any 
special  trouble.  Toward  the  latter  part  of  August  my  friend  of 
the  "  League  "  warned  me  that  I  was  in  danger  of  losing  not 
only  my  liberty,  but  my  life,  and  advised  me  to  get  away  as 
quietly  and  as  quickly  as  possible.  I  lost  no  time,  and  in  thirty- 
six  hours  I  had  crossed  the  Missouri  River,  in  company  with  a 
younger  brother,  and  was  on  board  the  stage-coach  bound  for  the 
West.  I  had  no  definite  plan,  only  to  get  to  a  place  of  safety 
20 


306  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

and  await  developments.  I  had  no  thought  of  remaining  away 
longer  than  the  war  made  it  necessary.  I  spent  thirteen  months 
at  Austin,  containing  a  population  of  about  six  thousand,  mostlv 
men;  preached  the  first  sermon  ever  preached  in  the  town,  mar- 
ried the  first  couple ;  organized  a  Christian  Association — the  best 
I  could.  I  continued  to  preach  to  them  during  thirteen  months, 
while  I  supported  myself  with  my  own  hands.  I  was  still  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Missouri  Conference.  At  the  session  of  the  Conference 
held  at  Mexico  in  1863  my  name  was  announced  to  work  in  Ne- 
vada. I  was  the  only  appointee  from  the  Conference  ever  sent 
to  that  field.  In  the  fall  of  1864,  at  the  solicitation  of  brethren 
in  California,  I  consented  to  transfer  to  the  Pacific  Conference; 
and  was  so  transferred  by  Eishop  Kavanaugh,  and  stationed  at 
Sacramento,  where  I  remained  two  years ;  then  to  San  Francis- 
co, two  years;  to  San  Francisco  District,  three  years;  Colusa 
Station,  four  years ;  Santa  Clara  Circuit,  one  year;  San  Jose,  two 
years.  In  August,  1878,  I  was  transferred  back  to  my  old  Con- 
ference; reached  the  Conference  during  its  session,  and  was 
again  with  my  brethren  of  other  years,  after  a  painful  absence  of 
seventeen  years. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  foregoing  that  my  leaving  Missouri 
was  not  from  choice  or  inclination.  Necessity  was  laid  upon 
me.  I  had  left  my  charge  at  Chillicothe  in  obedience  to  the  call 
of  the  Church.  After  my  return  I  had  no  pastoral  charge;  in- 
deed, could  not  obtain  one;  was  cut  off  absolutely  from  the  pas- 
toral work;  was  hunted  down  by  the  militia  until  I  had  to  seek 
safety  as  best  I  could. 

I  have  thus  given  a  brief  account  of  my  ministerial  life,  and 
especially  my  experience  during  the  war.  It  is  but  the  experi- 
ence of  many,  indeed  hundreds  of  others  of  our  ministers  and 
members.  It  is  an  essential  part  of  the  history  of  Southern 
Methodism  in  Missouri.  I  have  set  down  nothing  in  malice.  I 
have  long  since  learned  to  love  even  my  enemies,  and  to  forgive 
all  the  wrongs  of  the  past  as  I  hope  to  be  forgiven  and  accepted 
in  that  day.  As  life's  sun  hastens  to  its  setting  I  catch,  more 
and  more,  glimpses  and  sometimes -brighter  visions  of  that  bet- 
ter country  where  the  former  things  have  passed  awav,  where 
only  are  joy  and  gladness,  and  sorrow  and  sighing  are  fled 
away.* 

*Rev.  E.  K.  Miller,  MS. 


1867-68.  Missouri  Conference.  307 

Rev.  T.  B.  King  writes  from  Platte  City  in  the 
following  language : 

I  will  report  progress.  My  first  protracted  meeting  of  a  week's 
continuance  was  held  at  Farley,  resulting  in  six  conversions  and 
as  many  additions  to  the  Church— all  of  mature  years.  During 
Christmas  I  went  into  Bethel  Church  neighborhood,  where  the 
war  had  left  the  claws  of  a  few  members  of  the  Church,  who 
had  been  exercising  their  powers  in  a  «  Kilkenny  "  cat  fight.  Our 
good  and  substantial  church-building  had  been  abused,  and  not 
used  for  some  years.  This  we  had  repaired,  and  collected  and 
reorganized  a  class  of  ten  persons.  We  left  the  Church  and  com- 
munity in  a  hundred-fold  better  condition. 

We  next  held  a  meeting  of  one  week  at  Brink's  School-house, 
during  which  meeting  there  were  forty-five  conversions  and 
forty-nine  additions.  It  was  an  extraordinary  good  and  profita- 
ble meeting.  The  entire  membership  was  revived,  and  the  old 
members  joined  the  new  converts  in  shouting  the  praises  of 
God.  The  members  of  other  denominations  cordiallv  partici- 
pated in  the  religious  exercises  of  the  meeting,  and  received  a 
common  blessing  with  ourselves. 

The  next  appointment  was  a  quarterly  meeting  at  Parkville, 
conducted  by  our  presiding  elder,  Rev.  W.  M.  Rush.  Here  we 
had  some  twenty  conversions  and  twenty-three  additions.  On 
Sunday  we  had  the  largest  congregations  ever  assembled  in 
Parkville — enough  to  fill  two  such  houses.  Brother  Rush  is 
loved  for  his  Christian  spirit  and  admired  for  his  ministerial 
power  and  learning  by  all  the  people.  The  love-feast  on  Mon- 
day morning  was  a  most  delightful  occasion. 

During  this  quarter  the  accessions  to  the  Church  have  been 
ninety-two.  O  that  each  one  may  be  found  "  like  a  tree  plant- 
ed by  the  rivers  of  water,  that  bringeth  forth  his  fruit  in  his 
season;  his  leaf  also  shall  not  wither;  and  whatsoever  he  doeth 
shall  prosper."  Yet  it  is  sad  to  think  that  so  many  members  are 
in  the  Church  as  barren  fig-trees,  who  when  they  attend  divine 
service  are  nothing  else  than  idle  spectators,  like  those  who  go 
to  the  opera,  the  theater,  and  the  circus.  "  They  are  hearers 
only,  but  not  doers  of  the  word."  But,  thank  God,  the  picture 
has  a  bright  side  as  well  as  a  dark  one;  for  there  are  the  faith- 


308  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

ful  ones  who  bring  forth  some  thirty,  some  sixty,  and  some  a 
hundred  fold  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord.* 

Rev.  J.  R.  Taylor,  in  charge  of  the  High  Hill 
Circuit,  writes  thus : 

We  held  a  protracted  meeting  at  Cottonwood  of  one  week's 
duration.  As  the  Church  had  experienced  a  gradual  and 
healthy  growth  during  the  year,  the  members  were  ready  for 
the  good  work,  and  the  revival  commenced  with  the  meeting. 
Many  Christian  hearts  were  made  happy,  many  wandering  prod- 
igals were  called  back,  and  sinners  were  powerfully  convicted 
and  converted,  and  twenty-one  persons  avouched  themselves  to 
be  on  the  Lord's  side  by  uniting  with  the  Church.  The  Society 
has  increased  this  year  from  nineteen  to  fifty-five.  Thev  intend 
to  build  a  new  church,  and  are  going  about  it  in  good,  hard 
earnestness.  The  Church  is  materially  and  spiritually  coming 
up  out  of  the  wilderness. 

Before  we  could  close  the  meeting  at  Cottonwood  our  sacra- 
mental meeting  commenced  at  New  Providence;  fortunately, 
however,  Father  Eads  was  present  to  conduct  the  meeting. 
Brothers  Nichols  and  Slavens,  local  preachers,  were  also  there 
to  assist  him.  Brother  S.  W.  Cope  preached  for  us  and  worked 
with  us  in  the  meeting  a  week.  Then  came  Father  Monroe, 
who  was  with  us  one  day  and  night  and  preached  twice.  The 
meeting  was  characterized  by  considerable  spiritual  interest  and 
saving  power,  in  quickening  the  Church  and  convicting  and 
converting  sinners.  One  hundred  persons  have  been  received 
into  the  Church  on  this  circuit  since  the  Conference.* 

Rev.  D.  C.  Blackwell  gives  an  encouraging  ac- 
count of  Bloomington  Circuit: 

We  have  been  engaged  in  protracted  meetings  for  nearly 
three  weeks.  The  first  of  the  series  commenced  on  the  8th  of 
August  at  Liberty.  Brother  Vincil  was  with  us  most  of  the 
time,  and  preached  with  power  and  great  acceptability.  But 
better  than  all,  the  good  Lord  was  with  us  to  kill  and  make 
alive.  Thirty-two  were  added  to  the  Church,  and  about  the  same 
number  converted.  Convictions  were  pungent  and  the  con- 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


1867-68  Missouri  Conference.  309 

versions  clear.  The  revival  -was  general.  Brethren  who  had 
been  at  variance  were  brought  together  in  bonds  of  renewed 
Christian  fellowship,  and  were  made  to  realize  that  "love 
thinketh  no  evil." 

The  meeting  continued  twelve  days,  Brother  Vincil  remain- 
ing two  days  after  I  was  compelled  to  leave.  I  was  to  have 
commenced  a  series  of  meetings  on  Saturday,  the  igth,  at  Grif- 
fin's School-house,  four  miles  north-west  of  Bloomington;  but 
was  detained  at  Liberty,  and  did  not  get  there  until  Monday 
evening;  but  the  brethren  kept  up  prayer-meetings.  They  were 
determined  not  to  be  disappointed,  and  when  I  arrived  there 
was  a  good  congregation.  At  the  close  of  the  first  sermon 
penitents  came  to  the  altar  of  prayer.  The  meeting  continued 
to  increase  in  interest  until  Friday  evening,  when  I  was  com- 
pelled to  leave  in  order  to  attend  another  appointment  at  Beth- 
lehem. At  the  time  of  my  leaving  twelve  had  united  with  the 
Church. 

We  are  now  in  the  midst  of  a  glorious  revival  at  Bethlehem. 
We  have  had  ten  conversions  and  accessions,  and  at  the  three 
meetings  mentioned  there  hdve  been  fifty-four  additions  to  the 
Church.* 

In  reporting  his  work  on  the  Millville  Circuit, 
Rev.  S.  Alexander,  among  other  things,  says: 

There  has  been  a  conflict  going  on  in  the  Church  between  a 
"form  of  godliness  and  the  power  thereof,"  but  it  seems  after 
so  long  a  time  that  the  victory  has  turned  decidedly  in  favor  of 
the  "power  thereof."  Spiritual  influence  on  the  sinner's  heart, 
and  the  necessity  of  being  "born  of  the  Spirit,"  are  generally 
acknowledged.  These  powerful  revivals  show  how  empty  a 
mere  form  of  Christianity  is.  May  the  good  Lord  multiply 
such  revivals  until  formality  is  driven  out  of  the  Church!* 

This  writer  would  with  all  his  heart  say  amen  to 
the  petition  with  which  Mr.  Alexander  closes  his 
remarks.  Will  not  all  the  preachers  unite  in  the 
prayer  for  that  kind  of  revival  that  will  forever  ex- 
clude all  formality  from  the  Church? 

~*St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

The  Ministers  Addressing  Themselves  Earnestly  to  the  Work 
of  Rebuilding  the  "Waste  Places  of  Zion "  in  Missouri  — 
Session  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  Held  by  Bishop  Mar- 
vin at  Kansas  City — W.  M.  Prottsman,  Secretary — Usual 
Statistics — Memoir  of  Rev.  H.  E.  Smith — Rev.  J.  S.  Frazier 
Speaks  Interestingly  of  the  Church — Rev.  J.  W.  Cunning- 
ham Visits  the  Southern  Methodist  Charges  in  St.  Loui.s — 
South-west  Missouri,  by  Rev.  H.  W.  \Vebster — Multum  in 
Parvo — Origin,  in  this  Country,  of  the  Different  Christian 
Denominations,  and  Their  Respective  Status — What  the 
Character  of  the  Ministers  of  the  Gospel  Should  Be. 

THE  Civil  War  having  ended  and  order  being 
restored,  the  Church,  with  renewed  consecra- 
tion and  divine  strength,  has  gone  to  work  in  earnest 
to  rebuild  the  waste  places  of  Zion.  She  does  not 
look  upon  the  wreck  and  ruin  of  her  organizations 
and  institutions  with  a  faint  and  faltering  heart,  but, 
like  the  faithful  Jews  on  their  return  from  the  Baby- 
lonian captivity,  she  is  addressing  herself  with  a 
persistent  purpose  that  knows  no  failure,  and  with 
an  indomitable  resolution  that  surmounts  all  diffi- 
culties, to  rebuild  the  temple.  This  she  is  doing, 
not  in  her  own  strength,  nor  looking  to  her  own 
resources,  but  in  the  strength  of  Him  who  says 
"Not  by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by  my  Spirit" 
shall  success  crown  her  efforts.  Under  the  guid- 
ance, protection,  and  blessings  of  God,  the  Church 
(310) 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  311 

is  moving  forward,  grandly  filling  her  mission  of 
salvation  to  a  lost  world.  It  will  be  the  pleasure 
of  this  writer  to  record,  from  time  to  time,  her 
successes,  her  victories,  and  triumphs  over  the 
world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil,  and  in  spreading 
scriptural  holiness  over  these  ends  of  the  earth. 

The  session  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  was 
opened  by  Bishop  Marvin  in  Kansas  City  on  the 
i8th  of  September,  1867.  W.  M.  Prottsman  was 
elected  Secretary. 

The  following  preachers  were  admitted  on  trial: 
W.  M.  Bewley,  C.  C.  Woods,  W.  F.  Graves,  E. 
S.  Frazier,  W.  P.  Hulse,  and  T.  Ament.  The 
following  remained  on  trial:  J.  F.  Hogan,  L.  P. 
Siceloff,  T.  M.  Cobb,  and  J.  D.  Wood.  Admit- 
ted into  full  connection:  L.  W.  Powell,  J.  S. 
Frazier,  and  S.  A.  Blakey.  Re-admitted:  S.  S. 
Bryant,  J.  W.  Maddox,  R.  Minshall,  J.  Tillery, 
T.  Wallace,  and  J.  T.  Gibson.  The  following 
traveling  preachers  were  elected  and  ordained 
deacons:  S.  A.  Blakey,  T.  M.  Cobb,  and  L.  P. 
Siceloff.  Local  preachers  elected  and  ordained 
deacons:  C.  C.  Woods,  C.  Bluejacket,  and  H. 
Stanley.  The  following  traveling  preachers  were 
elected  and  ordained  elders:  W.  C.  Godbey,  T. 
G.  Atchison,  D.  A.  McNight,  L.  W.  Powell,  and 
J.  S.  Frazier.  Local  preachers  elected  and  or- 
dained to  the  same  order:  L.  M.  Carter,  D.  Doffle- 
myer,  and  J.  Tillery.  Supernumerary:  J.  Boyle, 
J.  McCary,  W.  B.  McFarland,  and  N.  Scarritt. 
Superannuated:  M.  R.  Anthony,  E.  W.  Chan- 


312  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

ceaulme,  C.  Eaker,  A.  Rucker,  J.  T.  Peery,  J.  N. 
W.  Springer,  W.  R.  Babcock,  and  N.  T.  Shaler. 
Total  members  this  year,  12,362;  local  preachers, 
84;  colored  members,  159;  showing  an  increase 
over  last  year  of  4*450  members,  19  local  preach- 
ers, 116  colored  members. 

The  following  is  the  memoir  of  Rev.  H.  E. 
Smith,  who  died  during  the  year: 

Howard  E.  Smith  has  recently  departed  this  life,  and  we  have 
but  few  facts  in  connection  with  his  life  and  death.  But  the 
meagerness  of  facts  cannot  prevent  the  expression  of  our  regard 
for  one  who  has  been  for  twelve  years  a  laborer  with  us  in  the 
ministry.  Brother  Smith  was  admitted  on  trial  in  the  year  1855, 
from  Neosho  Circuit.  He  was  ordained  deacon  in  1857,  and  eld- 
er in  1859.  He  continued  to  labor  in  the  itinerant  work  till  the 
late  war,  when,  the  foundation  being  broken  up,  he  did  what 
work  he  could.  His  last  illness  is  said  to  have  been  caused  by 
overlabor  in  his  vocation.  He  lingered  for  some  length  of  time, 
exhibiting  much  patience  and  resignation  during  his  suffering. 
He  died  about  the  ist  of  July,  1867,  triumphing  in  the  faith  of 
Christ.  Those  who  knew  Brolher  Smith  best  testifv  that  he  was 
not  onlv  a  good  man,  but  an  excellent  man — humble,  devout, 
kind,  spiritual,  and  was  loved  by  all  who  knew  him.  His  only 
regret  in  death  was  that  he  left  his  family  destitute  of  the  nec- 
essaries of  life. 

The  following  from  the  pen  of  Rev.  J.  S.  Fra- 
zier,  appertaining  to  the  condition  of  things  in 
South-west  Missouri,  will,  if  we  mistake  not,  be 
read  with  interest: 

It  is  well  known  that  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  was, 
prior  to  the  war,  the  most  influential  denomination  in  this  por- 
tion of  Missouri.  To  one  acquainted  with  it  eight  or  ten  years 
ago,  to  compare  its  condition  then  with  its  condition  now  is 
painfully  sad;  but  to  compare  its  promising  condition  with  what 
some  of  its  truest  and  best  friends  thought  two  or  three  years 
ago  to  be  its  hopeless  condition  is  truly  gratifying. 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  313 

I  heard  when  I  was  far  away  in  the  most  favored  parts  of  the 
State  of  the  ordeal  through  which  our  people  were  passing  in 
the  South-west,  but  confess  that  I  did  not  fully  appreciate  the 
character,  variety,  and  magnitude  of  their  afflictions  until  I 
came  among  them  and  heard  from  their  own  lips  their  severe 
suffering.  There  are  hundreds  in  this  country  to-day  rejoicing 
in  the  prospect,  and  hopeful  of  the  triumphant  success  of  that 
which  with  sorrowing  hearts  they  once  regarded  lost.  During 
those  dark  days,  the  like  of  which  I  hope  may  never  return,  the 
lovers  of  our  holy  religion  had,  no  doubt,  feelings  similar  to 
those  of  the  captive  Israelites  when  they  sat  down  by  the 
river  of  Babylon  and  "  wept,  when  they  remembered  Zion." 
Their  love  for  the  cause  of  God  constrained  them  to  say:  "If  I 
forget  thee,  let  my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning.  If  I  do  not 
remember  thee,  let  my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth." 
And  thanks  to  Him  who  doeth  all  things  well,  his  people  did  and 
do  still  remember  Zion.  They  remember  her  in  their  tears,  for 
they  have  the  noble  sentiment  expressed  in  one  of  our  beauti- 
ful hymns,  "For  her  my  tears  shall  fall;"  and  for  her  their 
prayers  ascend  to  heaven's  throne.  They  remember  her  in 
their  labor  of  love.  "To  her  their  toils  and  cares  are  given." 
God  remembered  her  in  that  he  has  not  "  forgotten  to  be  gra- 
cious." He  has  been  and  is  still  with  his  afflicted  people.  They 
have  "  consolation  in  Christ,  comfort  of  love,  and  fellowship  in 
the  spirit."  They  are  "  like  minded,  having  the  same  love,  be- 
ing of  one  accord,  of  the  same  mind." 

At  various  places  in  this  district  there  have  been  interesting 
revivals  of  religion.  Brother  McGehee,  of  Greenville  Circuit, 
in  his  characteristic  way  is  doing  a  good  work:  has  had  a  num- 
ber of  conversions  and  accessions  to  the  Church.  Brother 
Ross,  who  is  an  able  defender  of  the  doctrines  of  the  Bible,  is 
accomplishing  much  good  on  Bolivar  Circuit.  On  that  circuit, 
at  Hickory  Grove,  a  revival  has  been  in  progress  four  months. 
Thirty  persons  have  united  with  the  Church,  and  the  meeting  is 
still  going  on.  The  members  are  so  much  encouraged  that 
they  have  undertaken  to  build  a  new  house  of  worship.  Hav- 
ing twelve  hundred  dollars  subscribed,  they  are  collecting  the 
materials  for  the  erection  of  the  house,  which  they  expect  to 
have  completed  by  next  spring. 

I  will  now  give  the  reader  all  the  information  I  have  con- 


314  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

cerning  Springfield  Station.  This  work  was  left  to  be  supplied 
in  consequence  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  having  possession 
of  our  church-editice  and  parsonage,  to  which  they  have  no 
more  right  than  I  have,  and  I  have  none.  Some  people  may 
think,  or  pretend  to  think,  that  I  have  no  grounds  for  making 
the  above  statement.  I  think  we  ought  to  give  publicity  to  such 
conduct.  I  would  be  glad  if  every  man,  woman,  and  child  in 
Missouri  knew  all  about  this  and  all  similar  cases  of  which  the 
members  and  ministers  of  the  M.  E.  Church  (North)  were  guilty. 
They  are  shamefully  guilty  of  great  wrongs  in  the  view  of  all 
right-minded  people.  May  they  "cease  to  do  evil  and  learn  to  do 
-well!  " 

We  have  no  house  in  which  to  preach  regularly  in  Spring- 
field, but  the  pastor  and  members  of  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
to  whom  we  are  under  obligations,  have  been  so  kind  as  to  give 
us  theirs  when  they  are  not  occupving  it  themselves.  Brother 
Winton  preached  there  last  Sabbath  to  a  respectable  and  ap- 
preciative audience  with  gratifying  results.  He  is  greatly  en- 
couraged with  present  prospects,  and  sanguine  as  to  the  suc- 
cess of  our  cause  in  the  bounds  of  his  district.  He  is  doing  the 
"  work  of  an  evangelist." 

According  to  the  best  information,  Brother  Hill,  who  is  in 
charge  of  the  Marshfield  Circuit,  is  giving  satisfaction. 

About  Springfield  Mission  I  know  more,  of  course,  than  about 
any  other  part  of  the  district.  On  this  work,  till  this  Conference 
year,  there  has  not  been  a  preacher  since  1862,  during  which 
time  our  members  were  scattered  as  "  sheep  without  a  shep- 
herd." On  coming  here  I  expected  to  find  the  Church  in  a 
very  deplorable  condition.  In  this  I  was  not  mistaken.  On  ac- 
count of  sickness  I  could  not  commence  operations  in  this  field 
for  a  month.  But  I  recovered  and  went  to  work,  as  I  thought, 
in  the  strength  of  the  Lord.  There  were  from  the  beginning 
large  congregations,  and  much  interest  manifested  by  some  of 
them.  Up  to  the  present  time  there  have  been  fifty  accessions 
to  the  Church  on  this  work,  many  of  whom  are  among  the  best 
citizens  of  Green  County.  The  work  of  "reconstruction"  is 
about  complete,  and  I  think  there  will  soon  be  a  victorious  army 
in  the  field. 

The  people  here  are  poor,  rendered  so  by  the  war.  But  they 
are  talking  about  trying  to  build  churches  in  two  different 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  315 

neighborhoods  on  this  circuit.  I  believe  they  will  succeed. 
They  say  also,  notwithstanding  they  are  poor,  that  they  are  go- 
ing to  pay  fifty  dollars  to  the  cause  of  Missions — the  amount 
appropriated  to  them  as  a  mission. 

Our  second  quarterly  meeting  will  be  held  at  Ebenezer,  in 
connection  with  which  there  will  be  a  District  Conference, 
which  will  be  the  first  one  ever  held  in  this  district. 

There  is  much  that  should  be  done  by  this  body.  For  in- 
stance, to  resuscitate  the  school  at  Ebenezer.  We  need  a  good 
school  in  this  county  more  than  any  thing  else  at  this  time. 
There  are  several  young  men  here  who  wish  to  go  to  school 
with  a  view  of  preparing  themselves  for  the  Christian  ministry; 
but  there  being  no  good  school  in  this  section  of  the  country 
and  being  limited  in  means,  they  are  deprived  of  educational 
advantages.* 

Rev.  J.  W.  Cunningham,  editor  of  the  Kentucky 
Department  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate, 
gives  a  very  interesting  description  of  his  visit  to 
the  different  Southern  Methodist  churches  in  the 
city  of  St.  Louis,  and  we  will  give  to  those  into 
whose  hands  our  history  may  fall  the  privilege  of 
reading  it  as  furnished  below: 

Sabbath  morning  was  spent  at  Carondelet  with  the  Sabbath- 
school  and  congregation  of  Dr.  McAnally's  Church. 

Carondelet  is  a  suburb  of  St.  Louis,  about  seven  miles  from 
the  center  of  the  city,  yet  connected  with  it  by  a  continuous 
chain  of  houses.  We,  however,  avoided  the  dust  and  din  of 
street  travel  by  going  back  and  forth  on  the  Iron  Mountain 
railroad,  six  miles  of  the  distance  along  the  river  bank  under 
the  bluff  and  out  of  sight  of  the  inhabited  region.  Many  per- 
sons doing  business  in  the  city  live  in  Carondelet  and  have 
cheap  transportation  every  hour  in  the  day.  Among  the  deni- 
zens of  Carondelet  are  the  editor  of  the  Advocate  and  our  old 
Kentucky  friend,  J.  C.  Bull,  both  of  whose  hospitalities  we  en- 
joved.  The  former  is  pastor  of  the  Church  and  the  latter  su- 
perintendent of  the  Sunday-school. 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


316  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

The  church  is  a  cosy  little  edifice  embowered  in  trees;  a 
young  forest  flourishes  on  an  adjoining  lot;  many  homes  around 
have  ample  grounds  about  them  and  are  adorned  with  trees, 
shrubbery,  blooming  flowers,  and  vegetable  gardens — all  con- 
spire to  give  the  neighborhood  a  rural  appearance  and  make  it 
a  delightful  place  of  residence  to  those  who  have  homes  there. 
The  church  is  very  neat  and  pleasing  in  its  interior  appearance. 
A  nice  Sunday-school  throngs  its  seats  in  early  morn,  and  a 
full  house  cheers  the  minister  in  the  pulpit  at  n  o'clock.  A 
great  improvement  has  occurred  of  late  years  in  the  Caron- 
delet  church.  For  some  time  after  its  erection  the  attendance 
was  discouragingly  small;  now  it  is  encouraging  in  a  high  de- 
gree. 

A  pleasant  interview  with  the  Sabbath-school  and  a  sermon 
to  the  congregation  occupied  the  forenoon  of  the  Sabbath. 

DEDICATION  OF  ST.  PAUL'S  TABERNACLE. 

Rev.  W.  M.  Prottsman  is  pastor  of  a  congregation  in  the 
northern  part  of  the  city.  The  war  operated  disastrously  upon 
the  old  Mound  Church  in  that  region,  and  furnished  our  North- 
ern brethren  a  number  of  proselytes.  The  old  church  has  been 
sold,  and  a  lot  secured  in  a  more  eligible  locality,  where  it  is  ex- 
pected to  erect  a  handsome  church-edifice  after  awhile,  to  bear 
the  name  of  "St.  Paul's."  For  the  present  the  Sunday-school 
and  congregation  occupy  a  neat  and  commodious  brick  edifice 
just  completed  and  dedicated  on  another  lot.  It  is  called  the 
"  Tabernacle,"  and  is  to  be  to  the  new  church  in  contemplation, 
what  the  "  tabernacle  "  in  the  wilderness  was  to  the  temple  in  Je- 
rusalem. Not  that  the  coming  temple  will  equal  that  which  Sol- 
omon built,  but  that  the  present  edifice  is  to  prepare  the  way 
for  the  other. 

Under  the  guidance  of  Rev.  P.  M.  Pinckard  we  left  Caron- 
delet  at  half-past  2  o'clock  P.M.,  and  at  half-past  3  o'clock  by 
the  aid  of  steam  and  horse  cars  had  left  nine  miles  of  the  city 
and  its  suburbs  in  our  rear,  and  were  at  the  door  of  the  Tab- 
ernacle, at  the  corner  of  Tenth  and  Benton  Streets.  The  house 
was  full,  but  we  found  a  place  on  the  pulpit  platform,  in  com- 
pany with  several  of  the  city  pastors,  and  heard  a  practical  and 
appropriate  dedicatory  discourse  from  Bishop  Marvin. 

His  text  was:  "  Go  up  to  the  mountain,  and  bring  wood,  and 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  317 

build  the  house;  and  I  will  take  pleasure  in  it,  and  I  will  be  glo- 
rified, saith  the  Lord." 

We  shall  make  no  effort  to  report  even  a  synopsis  of  the  dis- 
course, only  saying  that  one  point  he  made  was  that  God  is 
glorified  by  his  people  in  the  erection  of  suitable  houses  of  wor- 
ship, but  some  church-houses  are  neither  creditable  to  the  peo- 
ple who  build  them,  nor  do  they  glorify  Him  to  whom  they  are 
consecrated.  Not  that  God  may  not  be  profitably  worshiped  in 
a  log  cabin  or  other  rude  structure,  where  people  are  poor  and 
can  do  no  better,  but  when  the  people  are  able  to  honor  God 
with  an  elegant  temple  of  worship  it  is  their  duty  to  do  so,  and 
if  they  fail  to  do  it  God  is  not  glorified,  nor  his  cause  properly 
promoted.  In  great  cities,  where  architectural  beauties  are  vis- 
ible all  around  in  human  habitations,  houses  of  business,  and 
places  of  amusement,  God  must  not  be  dishonored  by  the  erec- 
tion of  poor  and  rude  structures  for  his  worship,  but  must  be 
glorified  by  the  consecration  to  him  of  temples  in  keeping  with 
their  surroundings.  Rude  church-edifices  and  elegant  surround- 
ings are  repulsive  to  strangers;  elegant  ones  are  inviting,  and 
the  multitude  will  pass  the  former  and  be  lured  by  the  attrac- 
tions of  the  latter.  He  had  witnessed  several  efforts  to  inaugu- 
rate new  Church  enterprises  in  that  city,  but  they  had  been  on 
a  scale  not  equal  to  the  demand,  and  they  had  been  failures,  as 
all  such  efforts  will  be  in  the  future. 

The  tabernacle  then  to  be  dedicated  was  a  harbinger  of  the 
more  stately  and  elegant  temple  to  come.  It  cost  only  three 
thousand  and  one  hundred  dollars;  yet  there  was  a  debt  of  fif- 
teen hundred  dollars  upon  it  that  must  be  liquidated.  In  a  short 
time  about  sixteen  hundred  dollars  was  subscribed,  and  after  a 
dedicatory  hymn,  announced  by  the  writer  and  sung  by  the 
choir  and  congregation,  the  prayer  of  consecration  was  made 
by  Rev.  W.  A.  Smith,  D.D.  After  the  doxology,  sung  by  the 
entire  congregation,  the  benediction  was  pronounced  by  Rev. 
P.  M.  Pinckard.  We  omitted  to  say  that  the  introductory  serv- 
ices consisted  of  appropriate  Scripture  lessons  read  by  Rev. 
Dr.  Camp,  and  singing  and  prayer  led  by  Rev.  R.  A.  Jordan. 

The  tabernacle  is  a  comely  edifice  for  the  purpose,  of  suffi- 
cient capacity  to  meet  the  present  demands,  and  as  a  mere  fore- 
runner of  the  church  to  be  erected  hereafter  does  great  credit 
to  the  congregation,  and  speaks  most  favorably  of  the  energy 


318  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

and  industry  of  the  pastor.  It  was  a  happy  day  for  pastor  and 
people.  The  tones  of  a  large  cabinet  organ  filled  the  edifice, 
and  a  number  of  well-trained  voices  in  the  choir  and  congrega- 
tion added  in  the  sacred  songs  that  were  sung  to  the  interest  of 
the  occasion. 

CENTENARY  CHURCH, 

of  which  Rev.  W.  A.  Smith,  D.D.,  is  pastor,  is  located  on  the 
corner  of  Fifth  and  Pine  in  the  center  of  trade  and  fashionable 
display.  Hotels  and  business  houses  are  all  around,  and  the 
noise  and  confusion  incident  to  such  a  locality  on  the  Sabbath 
somewhat  disturb  the  preacher  and  congregation  and  detract 
from  the  pleasures  of  divine  worship.  Very  few  of  the  large 
membership  live  near  the  church.  Most  of  them  live  remote, 
and  many  of  them  miles  away.  As  in  Louisville,  so  in  St. 
Louis,  residences  yield  to  the  inexorable  demands  of  business; 
human  habitations  give  place  to  houses  of  commerce  and  pal- 
aces of  trade,  and  population  retires  to  the  more  quiet  suburban 
regions.  Thus  the  Centenary  Church  has  been  left  by  a  retiring 
membership  far  inside  the  circle  of  business,  though  it  is  as  far 
from  the  river  as  Walnut  Street  Church  in  Louisville  is  from 
the  Ohio. 

The  Centenary  Church  yields  to  necessity.  On  its  door  ap- 
pears the  words:  "For  sale."  It  will  be  sold  soon,  will  com- 
mand more  than  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  with  the 
proceeds  thereof  a  new  church  will  be  built  on  the  corner  of 
Pine  and  Sixteenth  Streets,  about  a  mile  farther  out,  where  a 
beautiful  lot  in  a  desirable  locality  has  been  secured  for  a  church 
and  parsonage  at  a  cost  of  thirty-five  thousand  dollars. 

The  new  house  to  be  built  for  the  Lord  will  doubtless  be  an 
ornament  to  that  portion  of  the  city ;  will  be  equal  to  the  de- 
mands of  the  times  and  the  taste  of  the  age  in  its  architecture 
and  adornings,  a  credit  to  the  congregation,  an  honor  to  the 
denomination;  and,  as  in  the  "house"  to  which  reference  is 
made  in  the  late  dedication  text  of  Bishop  Marvin,  it  is  hoped 
that  God  "will  take  pleasure  in  it"  and  be  glorified  therein. 

THE  PARSONAGE 

to  be  erected  in  connection  with  the  new  church  will  be  a  valu- 
able addition  to  the  Centenarv  congregation  and  preacher. 
Rents  are  so  enormously  high  that  a  hired  house  for  the  pastor 
of  a  St.  Louis  Church  is  a  heavy  annual  tax.  Twenty-seven 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  310 

squares  from   the  river  a  home  for  the  present  incumbent  of 
Centenary  costs  eleven  hundred  dollars  per  annum. 

The  Roman  Catholics  of  St.  Louis  have  been  wiser  in  their 
generation  in  one  respect  than  the  Protestants.  The  Catholic 
Church  has  become  the  proprietor  of  a  vast  amount  of  valuable 
property.  Very  much  of  this  was  secured  at  an  early  date  from 
the  old  French  Catholics  as  donations  while  in  health,  or  bequests 
when  they  came  to  die.  The  supposed  possession  by  papal  priests 
of  the  "  keys  of  the  kingdom,"  and  an  imagined  possession  of  the 
power  to  grant  absolution  to  papal  penitents,  have  been  a  source 
of  great  revenue  to  the  Church.  Many  valuable  lots  and  large 
sums  of  money  have  been  consecrated  to  the  Church  by  devout 
Papists  or  imperiled  penitents  in  that  solemn  hour  when  death 
appears  in  view  and  all  earthly  possessions  lose  the  value  pre- 
viously attached  to  them  by  the  dying  one.  The  Church  be- 
comes the  inheritor,  and  uses  the  inheritance  to  enlarge  her 
borders. 

Lots  purchased  by  "the  Church"  in  years  agone  at  small 
rates  have,  with  the  lapse  of  time  and  the  growth  of  the  city, 
become  immensely  valuable,  so  that  the  wealth  of  the  Church 
of  Rome  is  beyond  computation,  and  one  is  amazed  at  the  num- 
ber of  Catholic  churches,  asylums,  schools,  and  convents  in  St. 
Louis.  It  is  devoutly  to  be  hoped  that  Protestant  preachers 
will  never  claim  nor  attain  the  power  over  human  consciences 
that  is  exercised  by  Roman  priests  over  the  laity  of  their  Church ; 
but  it  would  be  wise  in  Protestant  denominations  to  secure  the 
possession  of  property  in  these  young  and  growing  Western 
States,  both  in  country,  town,  and  city,  which  will,  after  awhile, 
be  valuable  and  remunerative  to  the  Church. 

The  Centenary  Church  owns  the  ground  on  which  it  stands, 
and  that  occupied  by  the  buildings  in  which  the  Advocate  is 
printed,  and  in  the  vast  increase  in  value  since  it  was  purchased, 
and  the  high  price  recently  paid  for  a  lot  for  the  new  church, 
has  been  taught  a  lesson  of  wisdom.  If  Centenary  and  First 
Church,  in  each  of  their  existence,  had  bought  only  a  single 
lot,  at  a  small  price,  and  the  wealthier  members  who  have  died 
had  made  a  reasonable  bequest  for  the  purchase  of  Church  prop- 
erty, the  increase  in  the  value  thereof  would  have  enabled 
Methodism  ere  this  to  'have  a  fine  church  in  every  desirable 
locality  in  the  city. 


320  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

FIRST  CHURCH. 

The  old  Methodist  Church  in  St.  Louis  originally  stood  on 
Fourth  Street,  but  the  encroachments  years  ago  induced  the 
congregation  to  abandon  the  old  locality  and  retire  with  the  re- 
treating population  four  squares  farther  out,  where  a  new  and 
elegant  church-edifice  was  erected  and  where  the  congrega- 
tion now  worship.  The  First  Church  is  a  handsome  building 
without,  with  corresponding  appearance  and  appointments 
within,  and  a  commodious  and  handsome  parsonage  on  the  same 
lot,  in  which  the  family  of  the  present  pastor,  Rev.  Dr.  Camp, 
is  installed.  Under  his  guidance  we  explored  the  various  apart- 
ments of  his  church,  and  learned  of  enlargements  and  other 
improvements  to  be  made  very  soon  to  the  already  large  and 
handsome  Sunday-school  room. 

The  First  Church  contains  a  membership  of  six  or  seven 
hundred,  entirely  too  large  and  scattered  a  body  of  Christians 
to  be  congregated  in  one  church.  Impressed  with  that  idea, 
they  have  determined  to  build  a  new  church  and  divide  the  con- 
gregation. 

ST.  JOHN'S  CHURCH. 

St.  John's  is  to  be  the  name  of  the  new  church  now  being 
erected  by  the  membership  of  the  First  Church.  The  policy 
of  the  First  Church  in  this  matter  is  to  be  highly  commended. 
It  is  most  commonly  the  case  that  when  a  new  church  is  to  be 
erected  in  city  suburbs,  the  expense  falls  chiefly  upon  those 
who  happen  to  reside  in  that  particular  region,  and  in  many 
instances  upon  comparatively  poor  men.  Such  being  the  fact, 
the  new  congregation  is  forced  to  erect  a  very  plain  and  cheap 
edifice,  without  any  exterior  architectural  beauties  or  interior 
adornings.  Its  homeliness  within  and  without  renders  it  unin- 
viting to  people  of  a  refined  taste,  and  they  seek  more  attractive 
places  of  worship.  If  we  understand  it  correctlv,  the  member- 
ship of  First  Church  make  the  erection  of  St.  John's  Church  a 
common  cause,  and  when  it  is  completed  all  will  be  at  liberty 
to  take  membership  where  it  suits  them  best. 

Under  the  guidance  of  Dr.  Smith  we  took  a  survey  of  St. 
John's.  It  is  located  on  the  corner  of  Locust  Street  and  Ewing 
Avenue,  about  thirty  squares  from  the  river.  The  walls  are 
complete  and  the  roof  is  in  process  of  construction,  and  the 
building  is  to  be  completed  this  summer.  The  entrance  into 


1867-68.  St.  JLouts  Conference.  321 

the  main  audience-room  is  from  Locust  Street.  Its  floor  is 
only  a  few  feet  from  the  ground,  avoiding  the  ascent  necessary 
in  two-story  churches.  In  the  rear,  but  connected  with  it,  is  a 
two-story  building  with  a  lower  front  entrance  on  Ewing 
Avenue.  The  lower  story  is  divided  into  a  spacious  lecture- 
room  and  class-rooms,  including  pastor's  office,  and  the  upper 
room  is  large  and  is  for  the  Sunday-school.  The  entire  build- 
ing will  be  very  commodious  and  very  handsome,  and  be  the 
chief  ornament  of  that  part  of  the  city,  which  is  the  abode  of 
wealth,  and  where  fine  residences  abound.  St.  John's  will  be 
a  church  of  which  St.  Louis  Methodism  may  justly  be  proud ; 
and  we  trust  the  Lord  will  take  pleasure  in  it  and  be  glorified 
therein  by  a  faithful  ministry,  a  prosperous  Sabbath-school,  a 
multitude  of  conversions,  and  a  devoted  people. 

Remarks  of  the  presiding  elder,  Rev.  H.  W. 
Webster,  concerning  matters  in  South-west  Mis- 
souri : 

The  interests  of  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  in  the 
bounds  of  the  Granbv  District  are  evidently  on  the  advance. 
The  preachers  seem  to  be  in  fine  spirits  and  are  doing  good 
work.  There  may  be  found  in  almost  all  portions  of  this  coun- 
try the  best  of  families,  good  and  true,  whose  shoulders  are  at 
the  wheel,  and  although  torn  and  shattered  by  the  storms  of 
the  war,  they  have  the  industry  and  the  energy,  and  they  still 
live,  and  under  the  blessing  of  a  merciful  Providence  they  will 
live,  and  they  cannot  be  kept  down ;  and  last,  but  not  least, 
they  are  willing  that  others  should  live  also. 

This  class  is  not  confined  entirely  to  the  old  settlers;  but 
those  from  other  States,  and  from  the  Northern  States,  as  they 
have  learned  the  true  position  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  and 
find  it  to  correspond  with  their  views  of  right,  make  it  the 
Church  of  their  choice,  and  cast  in  their  lot  with  us,  and  prove 
their  sincerity  by  their  works.  And  there  are  a  goodly  num- 
ber of  us  out  here  in  this  backwoods  country  that  really  think 
they  have  made  a  wise  choice. 

Our  preachers  have  generally  large  congregations,  and  at 
manv  places  fine  revivals.  One  on  the  Nevada  City  Circuit  of 
extensive  interest,  and  resulting  in  about  forty  accessions  to 
the  Church.* 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 

21 


322  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

MULTUM  IN  PARVO. 

We  give  the  following  document  a  place  in  our 
history  because  of  its  intrinsic  value  to  the  Church. 
Commencing  with  their  origin  in  this  country,  it 
gives  a  condensed  statistical  history  of  the  differ- 
ent Protestant  denominations,  furnishing  facts  and 
figures  all  the  way  through.  It  is  a  summar}^  con- 
cisely given  of  much  solid  information,  and  we 
know  not  where  the  same  amount  of  useful  knowl- 
edge can  be  obtained  in  so  small  a  compass. 

It  contains  the  mature  thoughts  and  sound  opin- 
ions of  one  who  has  been  a  profound  thinker  and 
writer  for  more  than  half  a  century.  It  would 
be  difficult  to  find  a  person  who  has  served  the 
Church  longer — over  sixty  years — more  faithfully, 
more  successfully,  and  who  has  made  a  cleaner, 
better  record  than  Dr.  D.  R.  McAnally?  As  it 
was  said  of  the  lexicographer,  Dr.  Johnson,  that  he 
was  a  walking  dictionary,  so  it  may  be  said  of  Dr. 
McAnally  that  he  is  a  walking  library,  an  encyclo- 
pedia of  general  knowledge.  To  him  hundreds 
have  gone  and  obtained  the  desired  information 
and  the  solution  of  difficult  and  intricate  questions. 

The  utterances  of  this  good  man  should  be  re- 
garded as  the  results  of  his  long  and  large  expe- 
rience, and  should  certainly  have  weight  in  the 
Church  to  which  he  has  devoted  all  the  years  of 
his  useful  life.  It  cannot  fail  to  interest  the  relig- 
ious, thinking  class  of  readers.  He  makes  the 
following  passage  of  Scripture,  in  Deuteronomy  i. 
n,  the  basis  of  his  thoughts  and  remarks:  "The 


1867-68.  <5V.  Louis  Conference.  323 

Lord  God  of  your  fathers  make  you  a  thousand 
times  so  many  more  as  ye  are,  and  bless  you,  as 
he  hath  promised  you ! ' ' 

As  the  generation  which  heard  the  law  of  God  at  Mount  Sinai 
had  with  a  few  individual  exceptions  passed  away,  it  was  deemed 
proper  that,  before  the  death  of  Moses,  he  should  repeat  in  sub- 
stance, or  give  to  the  then  living  generation  a  second  edition  of 
the  law,  and  this  forms  the  matter  of  the  book  of  Deuteronomy, 
as  the  word  itself  signifies.  Under  God,  Moses  had  been  the 
leader  and  instructor  of  that  people  during  forty  years.  His  deep 
and  abiding  anxiety  for  their  welfare  was  intense,  and  perhaps  the 
more  so  now,  that  he  was  soon  to  close  his  earthlv  career — go 
hence  and  leave  them  to  the  care  of  others.  He  begins  by  refer- 
ring to  the  past — recounting  mercies,  blessings,  protection,  defense, 
supply  of  all  needs,  and  wondrous  works  in  their  behalf — alludes 
to  their  numerical  increase  and  parenthetically  throws  in  the 
above  passage :  "  The  Lord  God  of  your  fathers  make  you  a 
thousand  times  so  many  more  as  ye  are,  and  bless  you,  as  he  has 
promised  you ! " 

This  was  doubtless  the  sincere  and  honest  prayer  of  his  heart; 
and  it  is  the  prayer  of  every  true  Christian  man  and  woman  on 
the  face  of  the  earth,  in  regard  to  the  numerical  increase  of  the 
Christian  people.  Moreover  it  is  the  prayer  of  every  denomina- 
tionalist  in  regard  to  the  particular  denomination  with  which  he 
is  connected.  Each  denomination  honestly  believes  it  has  some 
peculiarities  better  calculated  to  accomplish  the  great  work  of 
saving  souls  than  are  found  elsewhere ;  and  while  as  Christians 
they  pray  for  all,  the}'  specially  pray  for  the  success  of  the  de- 
nomination which  they  represent.  Considering  human  nature  as 
it  is,  no  reasonable  objection  can  be  used  against  this. 

It  is,  however,  not  to  be  supposed  that  any  sane  man  in  these 
days  expects  the  desired  end  to  be  unconditionally  attained.  Mo- 
ses did  not  expect  it,  nor  do  we.  Hence  it  becomes  us  to  inquire 
into  the  conditions — ascertain  what  they  are,  and  how  they  are  to 
be  complied  with.  But  before  undertaking  this — that  is,  under- 
taking to  ascertain  how  we,  as  a  denomination  of  Christians,  may 
increase — it  may  be  well  to  take  a  hasty  view,  both  positively  and 
relatively,  as  to  what  we  have  been  and  are  now. 

The  introduction  of  Christianity  in  this  country  was  first  by 


324  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

the  Catholics.  At  its  discovery  possession  was  taken  in  the 
name  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church,  and  before  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century  they  had  planted  stations  all  along  the  coasts 
from  Florida  to  California,  and  from  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence to  the  head  of  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  thence  down  to 
the  Gulf,  and  this  from  forty  to  fifty  years  before  a  Protestant,  as 
such,  had  set  foot  on  American  soil. 

Protestantism  was  introduced  by  Virginia  colonists  in  1607. 
These  were  connected  with  the  Church  of  England,  and  nom- 
inally remained  in  that  connection  for  180  years,  till  the  Protest- 
ant Episcopal  Church  was  organized  in  1787. 

The  leading  denominations  of  the  country  are  (i)  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church,  whose  date  is  just  given;  (2)  the  Con- 
gregationalist,  whose  entrance  here  was  in  1620;  (3)  the  Baptist,, 
whose  first  church  here  dates  in  1662;  (4)  the  Presbyterian  was 
first  organized  in  1684;  (5)  the  Methodist,  in  1766.  These  five 
are  still  the  leading  denominations.  I  have  named  them  in  the 
order  of  their  dates.  I  might  include  the  Lutheran  as  a  leading 
denomination,  but  the  date  is  not  at  hand. 

From  the  dates  given  you  may  see  that  the  Methodists  as  a 
people  in  this  couutry  are  159  years  younger  than  the  Episcopa- 
lians, 146  years  younger  than  the  Congregationalists,  104  years 
younger  than  the  Baptists,  and  82  years  younger  than  the  Pres- 
byterians. So  these  denominations  had  the  start  by  the  number 
of  years  given — that  is  to  say,  they  had  labored  these  many 
years  before  the  Methodists  began. 

Now,  let  us  inquire  as  to  their  success.  At  their  first  Con- 
ference, in  1773,  the  Methodists  had  10  preachers  and  1,160 
members.  I  have  not  the  statistics  of  the  other  denominations 
for  that  year,  but  for  1775  the  Episcopalians  reported  300  church- 
es and  250  ministers;  the  Congregationalists,  700  churches  and 
575  ministers;  the  Baptists,  380  churches  and  350  ministers;  the 
Presbyterians,  300  churches  and  140  ministers;  the  Methodists 
reported  19  ministers  and  3.146  members.  Nothing  was  said 
about  churches,  nor  have  I  any  statement  as  to  the  number  of 
members  in  the  other  denominations  at  that  date;  but  the  statis- 
tics of  1800  give  the  number  of  communicants  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Church  at  75,000;  Baptist  (regular  and  Free-will),  103,000; 
Presbyterian,  40,000;  Protestant  Episcopal,  12,000;  Methodists,. 
65,181. 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  325 

Let  us  now  look  at  the  statistics  of  1880,  and  see  how  these 
Churches  stand  after  eighty  years'  labor.  The  statistics  of  1880 
give  the  number  of  communicants  of  the  Congregational  Church 
at  384,332;  Baptist  (all  kinds),  2,452,878;  Presbyterian,  937,640; 
Protestant  Episcopal,  347,781 ;  Methodist,  3,574,485. 

Now  let  us  deal  fairly,  and  add  an  increase  of  25  per  cent,  of 
members  for  the  time  since  1880,  which  will  give  an  additional 
increase  to  the  Congregational  Church  of  96,083;  Baptist,  613,219; 
Presbyterian,  234,410;  Protestant  Episcopal,  86,945;  Methodist, 
893,621. 

This  increase  of  25  per  cent.,  added  to  the  statistics  of  1880, 
gives  the  following  membership  for  1888:  Congregational 
Church,  480,415;  Baptist,  3,066,097;  Presbyterian,  1,172,050; 
Protestant  Episcopal,  434,726;  Methodist,  4,468,106. 

This  may  or  may  not  be  strictly  correct,  but  it  is  as  fair  for 
one  as  for  another.  In  regard  to  the  Methodists,  I  am  satisfied 
that  it  is  not  correct.  They  make  their  reports  not  by  the  cal- 
endar, but  by  the  ecclesiastical  year,  which  includes  parts  of  two 
calendar  years ;  and  for  the  ecclesiastical  year  1886-87  the  net  in- 
crease of  the  Methodist  Church  was  over  200,000;  and  the  prob- 
abilities are  that  the  increase  during  the  ecclesiastical  year 
1887-88  will  be  as  great,  or  400,000  in  the  two  years.  So  the  in- 
crease since  1880  must  have  been  more  than  25  per  cent.  My 
own  convictions  are  that  the  aggregate  membership  of  the 
Methodist  Churches  to-day  is  nearly  or  quite  5,000,000.  And 
here  let  me  make  a  remark:  The  Catholic  Church  has  been  op- 
erating in  this  country  250  or  more  years  longer  than  the  Meth- 
odists. They  estimate  their  population — that  is,  all  baptized 
persons,  adults  and  children — in  this  country  at  about  7,000,000. 

The  Methodists  have  nearly  5,000,000  communicants,  not 
counting  the  baptized  children.  But  suppose  there  be  one  bap- 
tized child  for  every  adult  member,  then  they  would  outnum- 
ber the  Catholics  by  at  least  3,000,000.  Comment  is  unneces- 
sary. 

The  total  number  of  communicants  in  the  several  Protestant 
Churches  in  this  country  is  about  12,000,000,  and  if  we  allow  two 
adherents  for  each  communicant  there  are  36,000,000 — more 
than  half  the  entire  population  of  our  country — members  of  or 
close  adherents  to  the  Protestant  Churches.  The  Methodists 
alone  form  one-twelfth  of  the  population  of  60,000,000,  and, 


326  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

allowing  them  one  adherent  for  each  member,  they  form  one- 
sixth. 

But  to  make  the  nearest  approximation  to  the  real  state  of  the 
case  that  the  latest  official  figures  will  allow,  I  give  in  detail  the 
figures  as  made  at  the  latest  reports  on  hand,  all  of  which  are 
from  6  or  8  to  18  or  20  months  old.  First,  Episcopal  Methodists : 
M.  E.  Church,  2,020,511;  M.  E.  Church,  South,  1,107,456;  Afri- 
can M.  E.  Church,  475,000;  African  M.  E.  Zion,  350,000;  Colored 
M.  E.  Church,  166,729;  Union  M.  E.  Church,  21,000.  Total, 
4,140,696.  Second,  Non-episcopal  Churches:  Protestant  Method- 
ists, 144,559;  Congregational  Methodists,  3,000;  Independent 
Methodists,  5,000;  Free  Methodists,  16,826;  Wesleyans,  18,260; 
Primitive  Methodists,  5,002;  Reformed  Methodists,  2,500;  kin- 
dred bodies,  335,561.  Total,  530,708.  Grand  total  of  all,  4,671,- 
404. 

It  may  now  be  of  interest  to  take  a  hasty  view  of  our  own 
Church,  separately  from  the  other  branches  of  Methodism.  At 
the  end  of  the  Conference  year  1845-46 — the  first  year  after  the 
division  of  1844  was  effected — our  total  membership  was  455, 21 7, 
of  whom  124,961  were  colored  people,  and  2,972  were  Indians, 
with  1,433  traveling  and  2,830  local  preachers. 

Fifteen  years  after  that — or  in  1860 — there  were  2,615  travel- 
ing and  5,353  local  preachers;  total  number  of  members,  757,605, 
of  whom  171,857  were  colored,  and  3,395  Indians.  So  you  see 
that  in  those  fifteen  years  we  gained  over  300,000  members,  an 
average  of  100,000  every  five  years,  or  20,000  annually. 

But  the  next  six  years  tell  a  sad  tale.  In  1866  our  total  mem- 
bership amounted  to  505,101,  a  loss  of  over  250,000  in  six  years, 
a  loss  that  covered  five-sixths  of  the  gain  of  the  preceding  fifteen 
years.  Of  this  loss  nearly  100,000  were  colored  people,  and  of 
the  3,395  Indian  members  in  1860  only  701  were  found  in  1866. 

The  colored  members,  numbering  174,857  in  1860,  were  re- 
duced to  78,742  in  1866;  and  these  were  soon  after  separated, 
and  at  their  own  request  were  organized  into  a  different  body. 
So  that  in  about  six  years  our  entire  loss  was  about  300,000,  fully 
equaling,  if  not  exceeding,  the  gain  of  the  preceding  fifteen 
years ;  while  those  who  remained  were  dispirited,  sick  at  heart. 
Their  church-houses  to  a  large  extent  had  been  alienated  or  de- 
stroyed; in  many  places  their  organizations  were  broken  up, 
their  country  laid  waste,  and  themselves  reduced  from  affluence 


1867-68.  St.  Louis  Conference.  327 

or  competency  to  penury  and  want  Other  Christian  people 
predicted  that  most  assuredly  we  never  could  or  would  reor- 
ganize, and  kindly  opened  wide  their  arms  to  take  us  in.  Some 
went  so  far  as  to  pledge  their  word  and  honor  that  no  organiza- 
tion would  ever  occur,  and  entreated  aud  implored  our  people 
to  come  out  of  the  wilderness  waste  into  their  fold,  and  find 
peace.  Others  there  were  who  resorted  to  other  more  forcible 
and  more  objectionable  means  to  reach  the  same  end.  But 
enough  of  that  for  the  present. 

When  I  think  over  the  past  (for,  as  some  who  read  this 
know,  without  dodging,  flinching,  or  wavering,  I  was  there  and 
went  through  it  all),  when  I  call  to  mind  I  feel  in  my  conscious- 
ness that  if  the  Lord  God  of  our  fathers  had  not  been  with  us 
and  blessed  us  we  never  would  or  could  have  reorganized  and 
recuperated  as  we  have  done. 

After  twenty -two  years- from  1866,  we  stand,  and,  as  stated, 
can  see  a  Church  with  1,107,456  members,  with  4,530  traveling 
and  6,192  local  preachers,  by  whose  faithful  ministry  about  100,- 
ooo  persons  are  baptized  and  brought  into  the  Church  every 
year,  with  11,724  Sunday-schools,  82,205  teachers,  and  649,104 
scholars,  11,304  church-houses,  estimated  at  $15,242,538;  2,199 
parsonages,  estimated  to  be  worth  $2,487,936,  with  Missionary 
Societies  among  the  men  and  women,  and  Church  Extension 
Societies  pay  from  $300,000  to  $400,000,  and  increasing  year  by 
year,  with  missionaries  at  home  and  abroad,  and  others  steadily 
going  forth — all  endeavoring  to  keep  the  unity  of  the  Spirit  in 
the  bond  of  peace.  At  the  same  time  there  are  institutions  of 
learning,  colleges,  seminaries,  and  high  schools  in  nearly  every 
Conference  in  the  Connection  for  the  education  of  the  youth  of 
both  sexes.  All  this  and  much  more  may  we  behold,  and 
gratefully  contemplate. 

It  is  not  said  nor  intimated  that  we  have  done  all  we  could 
and  should  have  done,  but  that  much  has  been  done  is  undeni- 
able. 

Let  us  direct  the  reader  to  the  passage  of  Scripture  selected 
as  the  basis  of  these  remarks:  "The  Lord  God  of  your  fathers 
make  you  a  thousand  times  so  many  more  as  ye  are,  and  bless 
you,  as  he  has  promised!"  Now  is  it  to  be  supposed  that  this 
prayer  will  be  unconditionally  granted?  Surely  not.  Then 
what  are  the  requisite  conditions?  We  reply: 


328  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

First,  the  preaching  of  a  pure  gospel  by  men  of  clean  hands 
and  pure  hearts,  who  in  their  inner  consciousness  know  the 
gospel  is  true,  know  it  is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation,  who 
have  imbibed  its  spirit  and  live  by  its  precepts,  and  feel  "  Woe 
is  me  if  I  preach  not  the  gospel  " — no  Pelagianism,  no  Anti- 
nomianism,  no  mere  sensationalism,  but  the  plain  truth  as  it  is 
in  Jesus — set  forth  in  its  plainness,  pointedness,  purity,  and  en- 
tirety. We  must  have  preachers,  not  pulpit  actors,  nor  mere 
pulpit  elocutionists;  not  men  to  make  mere  oratorical  displavs, 
pouring  forth  their  thoughts  in  circumlocutory  sentences  and 
studied  periods — not  the  dealer  in  vapid  frothiness,  nor  the 
scientist  to  analyze  matter  and  tell  us  of  its  component  parts,  of 
the  relation  of  one  part  to  another,  then  give  the  history  of  the 
whole ;  nor  the  philosopher  to  expatiate  upon  the  wonders  of 
physical  nature,  the  correlation  of  forces,  and  all  that  sort  of 
thing;  nor  yet  the  dealer  in  abstruse  metaphysics  ranging 
through  spiritual  worlds,  of  which  neither  he  nor  his  hearers 
can  know  but  little;  nor  least  of  all  do  we  want  the  mere  sen- 
sationalist with  his  songs  that  are  mere  twaddle  music,  which 
for  aught  I  know  may  be  suited  to  the  circus,  but  certainly  not 
to  religious  devotion,  and  his  stand  up,  sit  down,  marching, 
counter-marching,  hand-shaking  sort  of  conversions,  when  per- 
haps not  more  than  one-fourth  of  these  converts  make  good 
Church-members,  while  the  rest  fall  back  to  be  pointed  and 
sneered  at  as  the  fruits  of  the  great  revival.  No,  none  of  these, 
but  preachers  of  the  gospel,  expounders  of  the  divine  word,  of- 
fering repentance  and  remission  of  sins  to  all  people  in  the 
name  of  Christ. 

Give  us  men  after  God's  own  heart,  that  will  not  hold  their 
peace  day  or  night,  but  cry  aloud  and  spare  not.  Paul  did  not 
go  forthwith  enticing  words  of  man's  wisdom,  but  in  the  power 
and  demonstration  of  the  Spirit;  and  so  should  we.  He  deter- 
mined to  know  nothing  in  his  preaching  but  Jesus  Christ ^and 
him  crucified;  so  should  we.  He  counted  all  things  but  loss 
for  the  excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ;  so  should 
we.  Science,  philosophy,  and  the  wisdom  of  this  world  have 
their  appropriate  places.  They  are  not  to  be  despised.  Right- 
ly emploved  they  are  extensively  and  variously  useful ;  but  the 
pulpit  is- the  place  for  the  cross  of  Christ,  whence  should  be 
discussed  those  spiritual  interests  so  vital  and  important  in  the 


ib67-6S.  *5V-  Louis  Conference.  329 

present,  and  which  extend  through  the  roll  and  sweep  of  eter- 
nal ages 

To  have  the  needed  preachers,  great  care  must  be  taken  by 
all  on  whom  the  duty  of  licensing,  ordaining,  and  continuing 
in  the  ministry  is  devolved.  Let  us  begin  at  the  beginning 
Churches  must  be  very  particular  as  to  whom  thev  recommend 
for  license  to  preach.  Here  is  the  starting-point  where  great 
care  is  necessary.  It  is  a  work  in  which  personal  friendship 
or  sympathy  have  little  or  nothing  to  do.  No  one  should  be 
recommended  simply  because  he  is  a  good,  kind  brother,  well 
beloved,  and  we  shrink  from  wounding  his  feelings.  Has  he 
the  intelligence,  the  gifts  and  graces  suited  to  the  ministrv? 
Let  the  Church  hear  him  and  act  intelligently,  as  well  as  cau- 
tiously in  the  recommendation,  taking  the  responsibility  on 
themselves,  and  not  turning  it  over  to  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence. 

Then,  when  before  the  Quarterly  Conference,  let  the  exam- 
ination be  careful,  close,  and  thorough;  so  that  no  unworthy  or 
incompetent  person  be  licensed.  Let  the  members  of  the 
Quarterly  Conference  keenly  realize  their  responsibility,  and  not 
ask, "How shall  we  save  the  brother's  feelings? "but, "I low  shall 
we  save  the  Church?  "  And  when  they  recommend  men  for  ad- 
mission into  the  traveling  connection  or  for  deacon's  or  elder's 
orders,  let  them  be,  if  possible,  still  more  careful.  First,  license 
no  man  whom  thev  are  not  willing  to  hear  preach  as  occasion 
might  require,  and  whose  preaching  would  do  them  no  good. 
Secondlv,  recommend  no  man  for  admission  into  the  traveling 
connection  whom  they  would  be  unwilling,  under  ordinary  cir- 
cumstances, to  receive  as  their  pastor;  and  recommend  no 
preacher  for  orders  from  whose  hands  they  hesitate  to  receive 
the  sacraments  of  the  Church.  What  right  has  a  Quarterly 
Conference  to  turn  over  to  others  what  they  themselves  would 
be  unwilling  to  take?  There  may  possibly  be  exceptional  cases 
or  mitigating  circumstances,  but  as  a  general  rule  there  is  no 
such  right  at  all. 

Close  and  continued  observation  has  forced  upon  me  the 
conviction  that  a  large  proportion — the  greater  part,  indeed — of 
our  difficulties  in  regard  to  incompetent  and  consequently  ineffi- 
cient preachers,  are  directly  traceable  to  either  the  incompe- 
tence or  unfaithfulness  of  the  Churches  and  Quarterly  Con- 


330  Methodism  in  Missouri.         •     1867-68. 

ferences  as  the  recommending  powers.  The  Churches  feel 
kindly  toward  the  applicant,  desire  to  avoid  wounding  his  feel- 
ings, and  throw  the  responsibility  upon  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence; and  the  members  of  that  body,  with  the  same  class  of 
feelings,  refer  the  case  to  the  Annual  Conference,  and  the  An- 
nual Conference  receives  or  ordains  the  applicant  on  the  faith 
of  these  recommending  bodies;  when  in  point  of  fact,  if  either 
the  Church  or  the  Quarterly  Conference  had  been  required  to 
take  final  action,  the  man  might  not  have  been  licensed  at  all. 
You  may  think  this  an  extreme  case.  I  reply:  Extreme  cases 
do  sometimes  occur. 

As  to  the  Annual  Conference,  it  is  by  no  means  clear,  at 
least  to  the  mind  of  this  writer,  that  there  is  that  closeness  and 
rigidity  in  the  annual  examination  of  the  moral  ministerial  char- 
acter of  the  members  there  once  was,  and  perhaps  ought  still  to 
be,  and  I  am  strongly  inclined  to  the  opinion  that  there  has  been 
greater  or  less  decline  in  efficiency  and  success  since  the  prac- 
tice of  carrying  on  examinations  with  closed  doors,  excluding 
all  except  actual  members,  was  abandoned.  I  do  not  advocate 
any  practice  or  action  because  it  is  old,  but,  if  it  be  proved  to  be 
good  as  well  as  old,  I  see  no  reason  for  its  abandonment.  If 
there  be  any  of  you  who  remember  the  close  and  critical,  yet 
kind  and  tender  manner  in  which  every  preacher  was  exam- 
ined concerning  his  manner  of  preaching  and  of  conducting 
public  service  generally,  his  deportment  in  public  and  in  fami- 
lies, his  personal  religious  experience,  and  indeed  all  that  per- 
tained to  his  life  as  a  man  and  as  a  minister,  they  will  not,  I 
think,  hesitate  to  give  that  practice  the  preference  over  that  which 
now  too  generally  prevails.  Of  course  this  examination  was  in 
the  presence  of  his  ministerial  brethren  alone,  by  whom  he  was 
reproved,  exhorted,  or  advised,  as  occasion  seemed  to  require, 
and,  unless  in  case  of  moral  delinquencies,  the  whole  matter 
was  prudently  kept  from  the  public.  If  Methodist  preachers 
expect  to  secure  the  success  of  the  Church,  among  their  first 
objects  should  be  that  of  preserving  the  purity  and  effectiveness 
of  the  ministry.  They  should  desire  this  far  more  than  the 
friendship  of  any  man,  far  more  than  their  own  comfort  and 
peace,  and  very  far  beyond  their  own  personal  popularity,  or  to 
be  well  spoken  of  by  others.  When  they  do  really  and  sincerely 
desire  this  purity  and  efficiency  they  will  need  no  promptings 


1867-68.  Si.  Louis  Conference.  331 

to  inquire  into  the  rumors  that  affect  any  one  of  their  body 
There  will  be  no  particular  favorites,  no  pets  among  them. 
There  will  be  the  same  moral  standard  for  all,  and  by  that 
standard  all  will  be  judged.  It  is  not  sufficient  that  preachers 
think  themselves  pious — others  must  think  so  as  well,  for  the 
very  life  of  our  system  depends  upon  the  confidence  of  the  peo- 
ple in  the  unadulterated  piety  of  their  ministers.  They  expect 
from  them  much  more  than  ordinary  piety,  and  if  their  confi- 
dence becomes  shaken  their  co-operation  becomes  faithless  and 
weak.  If  the  Conference  annually  "pass  the  character"  of  the 
preachers,  and  the  verdict  upon  their  purity  leaves  them  still 
liable  to  suspicion,  or  even  charged,  though  informally,  with  de- 
partures from  rectitude,  if  passage  of  character  means  no  more 
than  not  openly  condemning,  and  the  people  come  to  believe 
that  justice  has  not  been  done  in  the  matter,  then  I  do  not  see 
how  decline  and  ultimate  ruin  is  to  be  avoided.  The  people  can 
judge  of  the  purity  of  life  and  effectiveness  of  a  minister,  and  if 
they  see,  as  I  am  compelled  to  believe  they  sometimes  see,  in- 
efficient and  comparatively  useless  men  shifted  from  circuit  to 
circuit  and  station  to  station  until  they  have  burdened  the 
whole  Church;  or  if  they  see  men  kept  year  after  year  near 
the  same  place  because  of  their  real  or  supposed  social  qualities, 
or  because  they  are  favorites  or  tools  of  some  wealthy  and  in- 
fluential people — influential  only  on  account  of  their  wealth, 
or,  more  correctly,  the  wealth  which  owns  them,  the  Church 
all  the  while  not  improving  but  rather  declining  in  piety — 
now  can  they  feel  that  respect  and  confidence  necessary  to 
the  hearty  and  effective  co-operation  in  the  work  of  the 
Church? 

Conferences  are  trustees  solemnly  pledged  before  God  to 
preserve  the  purity  and  effectiveness  of  the  ministry  As  such 
they  may  not  act  toward  delinquents  as  individuals  against  in- 
dividuals, nor  try  experiments  on  the  Church  by  closing  their 
eyes  to  manifest  incapacity  or  moral  obliquity  on  the  part  of  any 
of  their  members,  and  continuing  useless  members  from  year  to 
year  in  hope  they  will  amend.  That  is  sickly  sort  of  sympathy 
which  under  such  circumstances  asks,  "  How  shall  we  save  the 
man?"  and  it  deserves  and  should  have  no  place  in  the  pro- 
ceedings of  Annual  Conferences.  If  there  ever  was  a  body  of 
men  bound  by  the  fearful  responsibilities  of  spiritual  guardian- 


332  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1867-68. 

ship,  and  by  that  sense  of  honor  which  even  in  godless  men  is 
stronger  than  life  itself,  that  body  is  a  Methodist  Conference 
when  it  sits  in  judgment  on  its  members.  If  they  abuse  a  trust 
so  solemn  and  so  important  to  others,  to  what  then  can  we  look 
for  evidence  of  ministerial  integrity  ? 

Let  me  refer  to  another  matter  of  importance.  In  order 
to  the  success  of  a  Church,  sound  doctrinal  preaching  must  be 
accompanied  by  healthful  Church  discipline.  Of  this  there  can 
be  no  reasonable  doubt,  nor  can  it  be  questioned  that  in  this  re- 
spect there  is  great  laxity  among  us.  Our  General  Rules  are 
not  observed  as  they  should  be,  and  must  be  if  the  Church  have 
real  and  permanent  prosperity.  The  duties  of  fasting,  family 
prayer,  regular  reading  and  study  of  the  Scriptures,  and  many 
others  are  not  faithfully  performed,  while  a  worldly  spirit 
largely  prevails  not  only  in  regard  to  the  acquisition  of  worldly 
goods,  but  in  regard  to  those  pleasures,  entertainments,  and 
amusements  of  the  world  looked  upon  by  evangelical  Chris- 
tians as  opposed  to  the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  gospel.  If  this 
spirit  has  not  been  encouraged,  it  certainly  has  not  been  rebuked 
by  the  numerous  entertainments,  public  rehearsals,  recitations, 
suppers,  sociables,  fairs,  festivals,  and  the  like — all  carried  on  in 
the  name  of  the  Church,  and  professedly  for  its  benefit.  But 
baptizing  them  in  the  name  of  the  Church  is  like  the  baptism  of 
Simon  the  Sorcerer,  leaving  them  the  same  as  before,  with  the 
same  worldly  spirit  and  worldly  effect. 

Now  let  young  ministers  and  Church-members  who  may 
live  and  bear  a  part  in  the  activities  of  religious  life  long  after  I 
shall  have  passed  away,  hear  me :  If  the  Methodist  Churches  ever 
decline  and  cease  to  prosecute  their  mission  to  the  learned  and 
unlearned,  to  the  rich  and  to  the  poor — especially  the  latter — and 
to  all  classes  and  conditions  of  society,  the  cause  will  be  found 
not  in  our  cardinal  doctrines,  they  are  of  God ;  not  in  our  Dis- 
cipline, it  is  in  accord  with  the  Bible;  not  in  our  modes  and  in- 
strumentalities of  operation,  nor  yet  in  the  deficiency  of  means. 
It  will  be  in  the  ministry,  and  no  where  else.  No  other  cause 
can  be  found.  If  the  ministry  be  what  it  should,  and  no  insur- 
mountable obstruction  prevents  their  access  to  the  people,  the 
Church  must  prosper.  Keep  the  doctrines  and  Discipline  of 
the  Church  pure  and  in  full  force.  Keep  the  ministers  full  up 
to  the  gospel,  and  the  disciplinary  standard  up  to  their  ordi- 


1867-68.  $V.  Louis  Conference.  333 

nation  vows.  Let  the  general  superintendents  discharge  the 
functions  of  their  office  fearlessly,  fully,  impartially,  and  com- 
pletely; then  no  man,  nor  devils,  nor  earth,  nor  hell  shall  or 
can  prevent  the  success  of  the  mission  of  Methodism  to  all 
classes  of  society  and  to  all  conditions  of  men. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Fifty-second  Session  of  the  Missouri  Conference  Held  by  Bish- 
op  Kavanaugh   at   Weston;  J.  D.  Vincil,  Secretary Our 

Church  -  house  a  Large  and  Splendid  Edifice — Weston  Is 
Full  of  Good  Houses  of  Worship — Institution  of  Learning 
Founded  by  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples,  but  Now  Belongs  to  Rev. 
W.  H.  Lewis — The  Conference  Full  to  Overflowing Influ- 
ence and  Popularity  of  the  Bishop — Good  Statistical  Report 
— Increase  of  Members  Nearly  Thirty-five  Hundred — Great 
Improvement  in  Sunday-school  Work — Should  Be  As  Many 

Scholars  in  Sunday-school  As  Members  in  the  Church Dr. 

W.  G.  Miller  Reports  Favorably  of  Weston  Female  College 
— Rev.  D.  A.  Leeper's  Funeral  Preached  during  Conference 
by  Bishop  Kavanaugh — His  Memoir — Rev.  J.  Devlin's  Work 
on  Carrollton  Circuit — Rev.  C.  I.  Van  Deventer's  Life  and 
Work,  by  Himself — Our  Church  and  Moberly — Rev.  J.  A. 
Mumpower's  Life  and  Work,  by  Himself — Rev.  George  C. 
Light,  D.D. 

"  I  ^"HE  fifty-second  session  of  the  Missouri  An- 
A     nual  Conference  was  opened  by  Bishop  Kav- 
naugh  at  Weston,  Mo.,  September  9,  1868;   John 
D.  Vincil,  Secretary. 

We  find  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  a 
notice  of  this  Conference,  which  we  substitute  in 
the  place  of  the  statistics  given  in  the  published 
Minutes : 

It  \vas  the  privilege  and  pleasure  of  the  writer  to  attend  the 
late  session  of  the  Missouri  Annual  Conference,  which  was  held 
at  Weston,  Mo. 

The  town  of  Weston  has  improved  very  considerably  since 
last  we  visited  it.  Many  new  and  some  rather  elegant  buildings 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  335 

have  been  erected,  and  there  are  now  evident  signs  of  thrift  and 
prosperity.  It  is  backed  by  one  of  the  most  wealthy  and  fertile 
portions  of  the  State  of  Missouri,  and  a  population  which,  for 
intelligence,  industry,  and  enterprise,  equals  any  other. 

Our  Church  in  the  town  or  city,  which  it  may  be  called,  is 
reported  to  be  in  a  very  healthy  and  prosperous  condition.  For 
two  years  last  past  Rev.  R.  A.  Austin  has  been  in  charge,  and 
under  his  faithful  ministrations  the  Church  has  prospered  well. 
Very  recently  there  has  been  completed  a  magnificent  house  of 
worship,  one  that  is  alike  an  honor  to  the  builders  and  an  orna- 
ment to  the  town;  a  more  convenient  and  beautiful  house  we 
rarely  find  in  the  Western  country.  Mav  it  ever  remain  as  a 
house  of  prayer  and  praise!  and  when  "  God  righteth  up  the  peo- 
ple, may  he  count  that  this  and  that  man,"  and  thousands  of 
others,  "were  born  there!" 

Indeed,  this  town  has  more  and  better  church-houses  propor- 
tioned to  the  whole  population  than  any  other  town  or  city  in 
the  State.  The  population  is  about  two  thousand  and  five  hun- 
dred, and  they  have  nine  substantial  and  neat  church-houses  be- 
longing to  the  following  denominations,  and  costing,  as  we 
learned,  the  sums  annexed:  M.  E.  Church,  South,  $18,000; 
Baptist,  $7,500;  Catholic,  $8,000;  Christian  or  Campbellite,  $6,- 
ooo;  Episcopal,  $4,000;  Lutheran,  $4,500;  German  Methodist, 
$4,000;  Presbyterian,  $4,000;  Colored  Methodist,  $500. 

With  a  taxable  property  estimated  at  not  more  than  half  a 
million  the  people  of  this  town  raised  for  Church  purposes  dur- 
ing the  last  twelve  months  forty-one,  thousand  and  jive  hundred 
dollars,  exclusive  of  the  salaries  of  their  preachers.  We  doubt 
if  such  another  instance  of  liberality  can  be  found  in  any  part 
of  the  Western  country,  if,  indeed,  anywhere  else. 

The  high  school  founded  and  carried  forward  for  a  time  by 
the  labors  of  the  late  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples  has  come  again  under 
the  control  of  our  Church,  Rev.  W.  H.  Lewis  having  pur- 
chased the  buildings  and  organized  a  school.  The  buildings  are 
very  good,  capacious,  and  elegant.  The  location  for  a  school  is 
an  excellent  one,  Mr.  Lewis  is  an  experienced  and  successful 
educator,  and  there  are  good  reasons  to  expect  a  large  and  pros- 
perous school,  at  which  many  of  the  youth  of  the  land  may  re- 
ceive a  sound  and  useful  education. 

The  Conference,  taken  as  a  whole,  is  in  a  gratifying  condi- 


336  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

tion.  The  members  of  the  Conference  are  a  set  of  most  excel- 
lent men — at  peace  among  themselves,  love  one  another,  and 
all  united  in  purpose  and  effort  to  do  what  they  can  to  promote 
the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  people  by  advancing  among  them 
the  principles  of  a  pure  and  holy  Christianity.  Nor  are  they 
behind  other  Conferences  in  talent  and  experience. 

In  Methodist  parlance,  this  Conference  is  full,  full  to  over- 
flowing— that  is,  there  is  an  abundant  supply  of  preachers  for  the 
work  within  its  bounds.  The  supply  was  good  before,  but  at 
this  session  the  number  has  been  increased  by  the  addition  of 
ten  promising  young  men,  and  also  six  preachers,  who  had  once 
been  in  the  traveling  connection,  and  were  re-admitted  from  the 
local  ranks,  making  the  total  increase  of  traveling  preachers  in 
the  Conference  this  year  sixteen. 

The  bishop  who  presided  during  the  session  was  that  faith- 
ful servant  of  God  and  of  the  Church,  H.  H.  Kavanaugh.  He 
was  in  excellent  health  and  spirits.  The  first  Conference  over 
which  he  presided  after  his  election  to  the  episcopacy  was  the 
Missouri  Conference  in  1854.  He  is  greatly  beloved  by  this 
Conference,  and  he  deserves  to  be ;  presides  with  calmness,  pa- 
tience, and  great  urbanity.  His  influence  for  good  among  the 
preachers  is  great,  while  his  pulpit  efforts  are  highly  appreci- 
ated. On  Monday  evening  of  the  Conference  he  preached  the 
funeral  of  the  Rev.  D.  A.  Leeper,  a  member  of  this  Conference 
who  had  died  during  the  past  year.  After  the  sermon  the  holy 
communion  was  administered.  It  was  a  solemn,  impressive, 
and  profitable  occasion. 

The  Committee  on  Statistics  kindly  furnished  us  with  the 
following  abstract  of  part  of  the  regular  Conference  statis- 
tics: Whole  number  of  members  in  the  bounds  of  the  Confer- 
ence, 17,313;  number  of  increase  this  year,  3430;  number  of 
Sunday-schools,  167;  number  of  officers  and  teachers,  1,466; 
number  of  scholars,  8,413;  number  of  volumes  in  libraries,  24,- 
210;  amount  raised  for  the  support  of  the  bishops,  $864.85;  for 
Domestic  Missions,  $3,475.36;  for  Foreign  Missions,  $1,774.72; 
for  Conference  Fund,  $1,746.73;  for  Sunday-school  purposes, 
$2,939.50;  for  Church  Extension,  $1,006.05. 

These  statistics  exhibit  a  gratifying  state  of  the  Church  in 
the  bounds  of  this  Conference.  But  a  large  field  white  unto  the 
harvest  is  still  before  the  preachers.  Heavy  responsibilities  rest 
upon  them.  May  grace  sustain  and  glory  crown  them! 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  337 

It  is  pleasing  to  learn  of  the  improvement  there  has  been  in 
reference  to  the  Sunday-school  work.  The  reports  show  from 
one-third  to  one-half  more  schools,  teachers,  scholars,  etc.,  than 
were  reported  last  year.  And  yet,  in  the  sober  judgment  of  the 
present  writer,  the  numbers  reported  are  not  more  than  one-half 
what  they  might  have  been,  and,  perhaps,  ought  to  have  been. 
We  think  that  the  number  of  children  under  Sunday-school 
instruction  ought  to  be  at  least  equal  to  the  number  of  Church- 
members  there  may  be  in  any  Conference,  or  district,  or  circuit, 
or  station,  or  any  individual  Church. 

Few  well-informed  persons  will  doubt  but  that  this  might  be 
the  case,  and  would  be  were  the  proper  attention  given  and  the 
proper  efforts  made.  Let  any  minister  look  around  him  and 
see  if  there  are  not  more  children  connected  with  his  congre- 
gation than  there  are  members  of  his  Church.  In  a  great 
majority  of  cases  it  will  be  found  that  there  are,  and  we  think 
that  the  effort  of  every  preacher  should  be  to  have  as  many 
children  under  regular  Sabbath-school  instruction  as  there  are 
members  of  his  Church  or  under  his  pastoral  care.  Let  no  one 
stop  short  of  that  point.  It  can  be  attained  and  ought  to  be 
attained,  and  when  attained  it  will  greatly  advance  the  interests 
of  the  Church. 

Of  the  Weston  Female  College,  to  which  the 
above  writer  directs  the  attention  of  the  reader, 
Dr.  Wesley  G.  Miller,  pastor  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  at  Weston,  speaks  thus: 

It  affords  me  much  pleasure  to  inform  the  friends  of  the 
Church  that  our  educational  enterprise  in  this  locality  promises 
to  be  a  complete  success. 

The  preachers  of  this  district,  in  their  third  District  Confer- 
ence last  year,  resolved  to  establish  a  District  Conference  school, 
to  be  located  at  Weston.  They* appointed  a  committee  to  make 
suitable  arrangements  for  carrying  their  resolution  into  practi- 
cable operation.  For  the  accomplishment  of  this  important 
object  the  committee  procured  the  services  of  Rev.  W.  H. 
Lewis,  A.M.,  known  throughout  the  State  as  an  old  and  suc- 
cessful educator. 

In  September  last  Brother  Lewis  and  his  corps  of  excellent 

22 


338  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

teachers  organized  the  school  in  the  old  "  Weston  High  School  " 
buildings,  which  buildings  were  erected  under  the  direction  of 
the  lamented  Caples,  and  the  object  of  his  highest  ambi- 
tion, and  which  buildings  Brother  Lewis  had  purchased.  The 
school  is  now  known  as  the  Weston  Female  College,  and  ma- 
triculated 140  pupils  this  year.  The  school  was  opened  under 
disadvantages  and  embarrassments;  for  it  had  been  sorely 
mismanaged  while  from  under  the  care  of  our  Church,  and 
commanded  no  patronage  and  no  confidence.  But  it  is  an 
encouraging  feature  under  the  present  organization  that  the 
number  of  scholars  is  continually  increasing.  The  interest- 
ing literary  entertainment  given  by  the  students  on  last 
Wednesday  evening,  to  a  large  and  intelligent  audience,  has 
tended  greatly  to  increase  its  popularity  and  confirm  the  confi- 
dence of  its  friends  and  the  public  generally. 

As  I  and  my  family  board  in  the  College,  I  have  unrestricted 
privilege  of  visiting  the  recitations  at  all  times.  Therefore  I 
am  prepared  to  speak  understandingly  on  the  subject,  and  I 
give  it  as  my  conviction  that  no  school  in  the  State  affords 
greater  facilities  for  obtaining  a  solid  and  thorough  education 
than  does  Weston  Female  College. 

It  is  evident  that  our  Church  needs  in  this  part  of  the  State 
just  such  a  school  as  we  have  at  Weston.  Nothing  tends  more 
to  give  to  the  Church  position,  influence,  and  power  in  a  com- 
munity. The  location  is  an  admirable  one,  easy  of  access  by 
railroads  and  river.  The  college  buildings  are  ample  in  their 
arrangements  for  the  boarding  department  as  well  as  the  liter- 
ary. The  school  is  now  in  successful  operation.  The  teach- 
ers have  given  satisfactory  evidence  of  their  competency  and 
adaptation  to  the  responsible  work  in  which  they  are  engaged, 
which  fact  is  fully  acknowledged  in  this  community.* 

One  death  "has  occurred  during  the  Conference 
year:  Rev.  D.  A.  Leepe*r,  whose  funeral,  as  has 
been  stated,  was  preached  by  Bishop  Kavanaugh 
during  the  session  of  the  Conference.  We  were 
personally  and  intimately  acquainted  with  Brother 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate,  December,  1868. 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  339 

Leeper,  and  a  better  man  and  a  more  consecrated 
man  to  the  Christian  ministry  we  never  saw — a 
man  of  remarkable  affability — gentle,  kind,  agree- 
able, social,  always  pleasant,  and  never  failed  to 
meet  you  with  a  gracious  smile.  But,  without  fur- 
ther comment,  we  call  the  attention  of  the  reader  to 
his  memoir  as  read  before  the  Conference : 

D.  A.  Leeper  was  born  in  Hopkins  County,  Ky.,  March  15, 
1819  (his  father  came  to  Missouri  the  following  fall);  and  died 
in  Chillicothe,  Mo.,  at  his  residence,  in  the  twenty-seventh  year 
of  his  ministry.  We  have  seen  many  men  die,  and  have  heard 
the  last  words  of  many  departing  Christians,  but  seldom  one 
like  this  good  man.  After  a  long  and  painful  illness  of  forty- 
two  days,  endured  without  a  murmur  or  complaint,  he  came 
down  at  last  to  the  river  and  looked  across  without  a  fear  or  a 
shudder.  He  always  expressed  a  most  perfect  readiness  for  the 
final  hour — that  resignation  which  nothing  but  a  life  of  piety 
and  an  habitual  exercise  of  faith  in  God  can  give. 

Brother  Leeper  began  the  ministry  in  1841,  and  since  that 
time  he  has  been  a  man  of  one  work.  Through  privations  and 
hardships  he  has  gone,  preaching  the  gospel  to  many  thou- 
sands, and  seeing  scores  and  hundreds  brought  to  Christ  through 
his  faithful  ministry.  He  was  presiding  elder  for  sixteen  years 
consecutively.  How  he  performed  that  office  the  preachers 
who  shared  his  trials  and  rejoiced  with  him  in  their  successes 
are  still  living  to  testify.  He  has  often  been  honored  with  a 
seat  in  the  councils  of  his  Church,  being  a  member  of  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  in  1854  and  1858,  and  was  also  elected  to  the 
Gene'ral  Conference  in  1862,  which  was  to  meet  in  New  Or- 
leans. 

When  first  taken  ill  he  said  to  his  wife  that  on  preaching 
his  last  sermon  he  was  greatly  blessed.  His  text  was,  "  On 
this  rock  I  will  build  my  Church,  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  not 
prevail  against  it;"  but  he  said  a  voice  had  been  saying  to  him 
ever  since:  "  Come  home; your  work  is  done;  you  have  suffered 
enough."  He  said  to  Brother  Dockery  ten  hours  before  his 
death :  "  I  am  so  happy !  "  And  when  told  that  he  was  dying,  he 
said :  "  I  am  falling  asleep  in  Jesus! "  Brother  Cope  asked  him 


340  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1896-69. 

if  he  had  any  message  for  the  preachers?  He  said:  "Tell 
them  to  raise  the  gospel  standard  high."  He  took  hold  of  his 
brother  James's  hand  and  said:  "Bless  God!  I  see  the  heaven 
of  heavens  above  me,  and  I  will  soon  be  there!"  He  said  also: 
"My  calling  as  a  preacher  of  the  gospel  is  a  glorious  mission. 
I  have  suffered  greatly,  but  I  now  begin  to  see  my  reward  and 
my  crown."  To  his  faithful  physician,  Dr.  Poindexter,  he  said: 
"I  thank  you  for  your  kindness,  but  all  we  can  do  now  is  to 
meet  in  heaven."  He  then  exclaimed:  "O  my  dear  wife  and 
children!" 

It  was  wonderful  as  we  stood  around  his  bed,  expecting  to  see 
him  breathe  his  last,  to  behold  a  calm,  beautiful  smile  lighting  up 
his  pallid  countenance.  I  asked  him  if  he  felt  that  God  was  with 
him.  He  answered  in  the  strongest  affirmative,  and  added:  ''  This 
is  the  sweetest  moment  of  my  life."  •  I  asked  him  if  the  heavenly 
hosts  were  coming  to  meet  him.  He  said,  "  They  are  already  here 
— father,  mother,  Alice,  Martha,"  and  others  he  named.  He  said 
also:  "Such  revelations  I  never  could  have  conceived  of."  After 
awhile  he  roused  up  a  little,  and  said :  "  Why,  I  thought  I  would 
have  been  in  heaven  before  now.  I  thought  once  I  was  there. 
Heaven,  my  friends,  is  no  fiction,  but  as  real  as  the  soul  and  body. 
While  it  was  only  the  twilight,  I  could  see  ahead,  and  I  saw  the 
great  white  throne  of  God,  and  the  redeemed  around  God's 
throne.  I  heard  the  music  of  their  songs  and  saw  a  hand  beck- 
oning me  to  come."  He  said  he  recognized  many  friends  there 
he  once  knew  on  earth.  He  told  his  wife  he  knew  it  was  hard 
on  her,  but  God  would  take  care  of  her  and  the  children.  He 
told  her  to  trust  in  God  and  not  be  afraid,  and  it  would  be  right. 
He  said  to  a  relative  who  stood  at  the  foot  of  the  bed :  "  Sam  Law, 
I  alwavs  loved  you;  meet  me  in  heaven."  All  the  time  he  talked 
a  most  beautiful  smile  played  over  his  countenance.  When  his 
brother  came  he  said:  "John,  I  am  glad  to  see  you  again;  we 
shall  meet  under  the  tree  of  life."  To  another  he  said:  "I  am 
about  to  be  off."  Being  asked,  "Are  you  ready  ? "  his  answer 
was,  "Yes,  I  am  ready;"  and  then  fell  asleep  in  Jesus. 

We  find  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  an 
encouraging  account  given  by  Rev.  J.  Devlin,  that 
holy  man  of  God,  of  -his  work  on  the  Carrollton 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  341 

Circuit.  He  "has  been  holding  a  series  of  pro- 
tracted meetings  in  different  parts  of  the  circuit 
with  success.  Has  received  into  the  Church,  since 
Conference,  two  hundred  and  eighty-eight  per- 
sons. Three  young  men  have  been  licensed  to 
preach,  with  a  view  of  joining  the  Annual  Confer- 
ence this  fall.  Much  has  been  done  in  the  way  of 
repairing  and  building  church-houses — now,  at  the 
time  of  this  writing,  they  are  laying  the  foundation 
of  a  good,  substantial,  and  commodious  brick 
church  at  Carrollton." 

In  the  brief  notice  given  above  we  see  the  true 
elements  of  successful  work  in  the  Church  of  God 
— many  souls  brought  into  the  fold  of  Christ,  young 
men  called  to  preach  the  gospel,  old,  dilapidated 
houses  of  worship  repaired  and  put  in  order,  and 
new  church-houses  built.  If  that  is  not  the  right 
kind  of  work  and  in  the  right  direction,  we  do  not 
know  what  is.  We  regard  it  as  unmistakable  evi- 
dence of  a  Holy  Ghost  revival,  when  young  men 
are  made  to  feel  that  they  are  called  of  God  to 
preach,  with  the  conviction  fastened  in  their  con- 
sciousness that  "woe  is  unto  me,  if  I  preach  not 
the  gospel." 

It  is  a  sad  feature  of  the  subject  that  in  so  many 
and  so  extensive  revivals  all  over  the  country,  in 
which  scores  and  hundreds  and  thousands  are 
converted,  so  comparatively  few  young  men  enter 
the  Christian  ministry.  The  world  is  now  ready 
for  the  gospel.  Every  door  has  been  unlocked, 
every  gate  unbolted,  and  every  barrier  removed, 


342  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

and  Ethiopia  is  stretching  out  her  hands  unto  God. 
But  how  very  few  respond  to  the  commission  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ:  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world, 
and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature!  "  The 
whole  Church  should  send  up  a  united  prayer  to 
God  to  send  forth  more  laborers  into  the  field, 
which  is  already  white  to  the  harvest. 

REV.  C.  I.  VAN  DEVENTER. 
The  moral  excellency  and  high  Christian  char- 
acter of  this  eminently  good  man  are  so  well 
known  to  all  persons  who  are  living  within  the 
bounds  of  the  Missouri  Conference  that  any  word 
of  commendation  from  us  would  be  regarded  as 
superfluous  and  unnecessary.  He  has  furnished 
us  with  an  historic  sketch  of  his  ministerial  life 
which  will  no  doubt  be  read  with  intense  interest 
by  his  numerous  friends: 

I  was  admitted  on  trial  in  the  Missouri  Conference,  September, 
A.D.  1844,  and  was  appointed  with  Rev.  George  W.  Love,  junior 
preacher  on  the  Liberty  Circuit.  The  following  two  years  I  was 
on  the  Bowling  Green  Circuit,  the  first  year  as  an  assistant  with 
Rev.  J.  Lannius,  and  part  of  the  second  year  with  Rev.  George 
Smith,  and  the  latter  part  of  the  same  year  was  in  charge  of  the 
circuit,  on  account  of  the  failing  health  of  Brother  Smith.  The 
next  two  years  I  was  in  charge  of  the  Danville  Circuit;  the 
next  two  in  charge  of  the  Fulton  Circuit.  The  next  year  I  was 
sent  to  Glasgow.  The  next  two  years  I  was  appointed  in  charge 
of  the  St.  Joseph  Station.  The  next  year  I  was  at  Weston ;  the 
next  two  years  I  was  stationed  at  Louisiana,  and  the  next  two  at 
Hannibal.  I  was  ordained  deacon  in  1846  by  Bishop  Paine,  and 
elder  in  1848  by  Bishop  Andrew. 

The  events  and  persons  connected  with  the  history  of  those 
years  of  sunshine  and  shade,  of  toil  and  struggle  are  not  without 
much  interest,  at  least  to  the  writer.  But  as  I  am  limited  in 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  343 

space,  and  have  much  before  me,  I  will  not  make  mention  of  said 
persons  and  events. 

At  the  Conference  held  in  St.  Joseph  September  15,  1859, 
Bishop  Paine  presiding,  I  was  appointed  presiding  elder  of  the 
Hannibal  District,  including  the  following  charges  and  preachers: 
Hannibal  Station,  E.  K.  Miller;  Palmyra  Station,  W.  M.  New- 
land;  Canton,  to  be  supplied;  La  Grange  Station,  A.  P.  Linn; 
Waterloo,  Louis  Baldwin;  Alexandria,  J.  R.  Taylor;  Monticello, 
M.  R.  Jones;  Fabius,  J.  W.  Penn;  Hydesburg,  D.  Mason;  Frank- 
ford,  T.  D.  Clanton;  Canton  Station,  to  be  supplied  by  J.  W.  Bar- 
rett, who  was  also  in  charge  of  the  Canton  high  school.  T.  D. . 
Clanton  was  transfered  early  in  the  year  to  Oregon,  and  J.  W. 
Markley,  a  local  preacher,  was  employed  in  his  place  on  the 
Frankford  Mission.  This  was  my  first  appointment  as  presiding 
elder.  The  district  embraced  the  north-eastern  part  of  Missouri, 
reaching  over  in  two  different  places  into  Iowa.  My  first  quarter- 
ly meeting  was  held  at  Alexandria,  in  Clarke  County — considered 
rather  a  hard  place,  but  I  did  not  find  it  specially  so.  During  this 
year  Brother  E.  M.  Bounds,  then  a  young  attorney  at  law  living 
at  Hannibal,  Mo.,  yielding  to  a  previously  unsettled  conviction  of 
duty,  was  licensed  to  preach,  and  employed  the  last  six  months  of 
the  Conference  year  to  travel  with  Rev.  M.  R.  Jones  on  the  Mon- 
ticello Circuit. 

In  my  new  relation  to  the  Church  I  was  of  course  much 
from  home,  always  to  me  a  very  great  privation.  But  the 
society  of  the  preachers  and  their  families,  with  the  added  kind- 
ness of  man}'  friends,  brethren,  and  sisters,  ministered  much  to 
my  comfort  and  the  pleasure  of  my  work,  now  so  varied  and 
enlarged.  The  memory  of  their  sympathy  and  co-operation 
with  the  young  presiding  elder  is  still  lingering  in  his  heart. 
Several  of  these  dear  brethren,  co-laborers  in  the  work  of  the 
ministry,  have  been  called  to  their  reward;  while  many  others 
of  the  laity  also  have  finished  their  course.  May  we  each  and 
all  who  remained  be  ready  for  our  change  when  it  shall  come! 
During  this  Conference  year  gracious  revivals  of  religion  were 
enjoyed  by  most  of  the  charges. 

At  the  Conference  held  at  St.  Charles  September  12,  1860, 
Bishop  Kavanaugh  presiding,  I  was  re-appointed  to  the  Hanni- 
bal District.  During  the  early  part  of  the  Conference  year  the 
pastors  were  generally  favored  with  encouraging  success.  But 


344  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

the  cloud  of  civil  war  was  already  hovering  over  the  land, 
and  the  first  and  bitter  fruits  of  the  times  which  followed  were 
being  gathered.  Having  a  large  family,  as  a  matter  of  economy, 
we  moved  to  our  large,  unoccupied  house  in  Louisiana,  Pike 
County.  The  change  added  considerable  to  the  amount  and  in- 
convenience of  my  travel.  But  with  God's  blessing  I  contin- 
ued in  my  appointed  work.  • 

The  Conference  of  this  year  was  held  at  Glasgow  Septem- 
ber ii,  1861.  In  the  absence  of  the  bishop,  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples 
presided.  It  had  been  appointed  to  meet  at  Hannibal,  and  was 
changed  to  Glasgow.  I  was  returned  to  the  Hannibal  District. 
Nothing  of  very  special  importance  is  remembered  in  connec- 
tion with  this  year.  "Wars  and  rumors  of  wars"  prevailed. 
Christians  and  Churches  were  sorely  tried,  and  hearts  and 
homes  were  made  sad  and  desolate. 

Amid  the  gathering  gloom  the  Lord  was  with  his  people. 
The  venerable  Martin  L.  Eads,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  Em- 
erson work,  had  in  1842,  as  preacher  in  charge,  signed  the  ex- 
horting license  of  his  present  presiding  elder. 

The  Conference  for  this  year  was  appointed  to  meet  at  Ful- 
ton in  September,  1862;  but  did  not  convene,  for  the  reasons  as- 
signed in  the  following  historic  order  of  Bishop  Kavanaugh: 

'•'•Postponement  of  Conferences. — For  the  preachers  of  the  St. 
Louis,  Missouri,  and  Kansas  Conferences.  In  view  of  the  war 
excitement  now  raging  in  Missouri,  the  perils  of  travel  on 
your  rivers  and  railroads,  and  the  serious  embarrassment  to 
which  your  preachers  would  be  subjected  by  removal  from 
one  field  of  labor  to  another,  I  have  deemed  it  expedient  to  post- 
pone the  sessions  of  your  Conferences  until  such  time  as  tran- 
quillity shall  be  restored  to  the  territory  embraced  within  your 
bounds." 

A  few  changes  were  made  by  the  presiding  elders  in  their  dis- 
tricts,  but  the  appointments  remained  principally  as  they  had 
been  during  the  previous  year. 

At  the  Conference  held  at  Fulton  October  14,  1863,  Rev. 
Andrew  Monroe  presiding  in  the  absence  of  a  bishop,  I  was 
appointed  in  charge  of  the  Louisiana  Circuit,  with  Rev.  A.  P. 
Linn,  supernumerary.  My  Sabbath  appointments  were  Louis- 
iana, Clarksville,  Paynesville,  and  Prairieville — territory  in- 
cluded in  my  second  circuit.  My  work  was  prosecuted  in  this 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  345 

charge  with  some  success  and  without  obstruction,  except  at 
Louisiana,  where  our  house  of  worship  by  \h&  forms  of  law  (but 
unlawfully)  had  been  put  in  possession  of  the  M.  E.  Church; 
while  we  were  under  the  necessity  of  making  the  best  arrange- 
ment we  could,  itinerating  from  one  unsuitable  place  to  anoth- 
er, until  one  good  brother,  J.  Zumwalt,  purchased  a  large  and 
comfortable  school-house,  and  put  our  little  congregation  in 
possession  of  it.  Here  we  worshiped  until  we  were  restored  to 
the  possession  of  our  church  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
State.  These  were  times  and  experiences  which  it  is  unpleas- 
ant to  remember,  and  such  as  God  grant  may  never  return.. 

At  the  Conference  held  at  Mexico  September  14,  1864,  Rev. 
A.  Monroe  presiding,  as  there  was  no  bishop  present,  I  was  Ve- 
appointed  to  the  Louisiana  Circuit,  with  Rev.  L.  R.  Downing 
supernumerary.  On  account  of  the  dangerous  illness  of  our 
son,  Olin,  I  was  not  present  at  this  session  of  the  Conference. 
My  appointments  were  the  same  as  the  year  before.  The  Civil 
War  had  ended,  but  peace  and  quiet  were  far  from  being  re- 
stored. Amid  many  discouragements  and  gloomy  predictions  of 
the  future  of  our  Church,  I  tried  to  walk  by  faith,  to  trust  in  God, 
and  do  right,  hoping  and  praying  for  a  better  and  brighter  day. 

At  the  Conference  at  Hannibal  in  September,  1865,  Bishop 
Kavanaugh  presiding,  I  was  appointed  to  the  Hannibal  Station. 
I  was  not  a  stranger  here.  It  was  at  this  place,  then  a  small 
town,  that  our  family  landed  when  we  first  came  to  Missouri  in 
the  fall  of  1836.  And  here  I  had,  in  my  past  ministry,  spent 
two  years  as  pastor  and  four  years  as  presiding  elder.  During 
the  last  year  of  my  former  pastorate  in  this  city  a  good  parson- 
age was  built,  but  not  in  time  for  me  to  occupy  it,  but  now  it  was 
to  be  our  home  for  the  three  following  years. 

At  the  Conference  held  in  Macon  City  in  September,  1866, 
Bishop  Marvin  presiding,  I  was  re-appointed  to  the  same  charge, 
and  also  at  the  Conference  of  1867,  held  at  Richmond,  Bishop 
Doggett  presiding.  This  old,  historic  charge,  on  account  of 
some  flcasaut  and  some  sad  memories,  is  sacred  ground.  Here, 
with  many  of  the  usual  and  some  of  the  unusual  trials  incident 
to  ministerial  life,  I  toiled  to  win  souls  to  Christ,  and  to  build 
up  the  Church  of  God;  and  while  my  life  and  labors  were  very 
imperfect,  I  trust  and  believe  they  were  not  in  vain  in  the 
Lord. 


346  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

At  the  Conference  held  in  Western  September  9,  1868,  Bishop 
Kavanaugh  presiding,  I  was  appointed  pastor  of  the  St.  Francis 
Street  Church,  St.  Joseph,  which  charge  I  served  the  four  vears 
following,  closing  with  September,  1872.  These  years  were 
years  of  much  labor  and  care,  but  years  of  much  happiness  in 
my  home  and  in  my  work;  and  I  trust  they  were  not  unfruitful 
in  the  accomplishment  of  good.  In  this  already  large  and 
growing  Church,  the  only  organization  of  our  denomination  in 
the  city  at  that  time,  the  pastor's  head  and  heart  and  hands  and 
feet  were  brought  into  requisition.  The  Church  of  this  period 
had  greatly  advanced  beyond  its  proportions  in  1852,  when  I 
was  its  young  pastor;  and  now  at  the  present  writing  (January, 
1890)  its  progress  is  still  more  manifest,  with  five  resident 
pastors  and  the  presiding  elder  living  within  the  city  limits, 
while  there  are  other  prosperous  charges  contiguous.  "  What 
hath  God  wrought!" 

At  the  Conference  held  at  Mexico  September  1 1 ,  1872,  Bishop 
Pierce  presiding,  I  was  appointed  presiding  elder  of  the  St. 
Joseph  District,  with  the  following  charges  and  preachers:  St. 
Joseph  Station,  Francis  Street,  E.  R.  Hendrix;  Tenth  Street,  S. 
W.  Atteberry ;  St.  Joseph  Circuit,  Cyrus  Doggett;  Forest  City, 
J.  W.  Huffaker;  Rockport,  T.  R.  Hedgpeth;  Hamburg,  J.  F. 
Muroe;  Graham,  H.  A.  Davis;  Maryville,  William  Barnett; 
Alanthus  Grove,  P.  P.  Doak;  Savannah  Station,  M.  M.  Haw- 
kins; Flagg  Spring,  A.  P.  Parker;  Rushville,  C.  Babcock;  New 
Market,  J.  C.  C.Davis;  Agent  for  Central  College,  W.  M.  Rush. 
The  territory  of  this  district  embraced  a  part  of  Platte  County, 
with  Buchanan,  Andrew,  Holt,  Atchison,  and  Nodaway  Coun- 
ties, in  North-west  Missouri;  and  one  charge  principally  in 
South-west  Iowa.  This  field  of  labor  was  comparatively  large, 
and  to  reach  some  of  the  appointments  at  this  time,  before  rail- 
roads, required  considerable  travel  over  large  prairies.  The 
presiding  elder  was  busy  and  happy  in  his  work,  and  he  has 
had  a  growing  interest  in  this  important  region  as  the  years 
have  gone  by.  The  Conference  year  was  favored  with  reviv- 
als in  most  of  the  charges.  One  special  need  was  suitable 
houses  of  worship,  and  ways  and  means  were  being  considered 
looking  to  the  erection  of  several  church-houses  that  year. 

At  the  Conference  held  at  Carrollton  in  September,  1873, 
Bishop  Wightman  presiding,  I  was  re-appointed  to  the  St.  Joseph 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  347 

District.  The  labors  and  results  of  this  year  were  not  different 
materially  from  those  of  the  preceding  year. 

The  Conference  held  in  St.  Joseph  September  22,  1874,  Bish- 
op Keener  presiding,  re-appointed  me  to  the  St.  Joseph  District. 
Additional  interest  and  pleasure  were  experienced  at  this  Con- 
ference by  the  presence  and  preaching  of  Bishop  Marvin.  Who 
that  was  present  will  ever  forget  when,  on  Thursday  night  at 
the  close  of  his  sermon,  he  sung 

My  latest  sun  is  sinking  fast* 
My  race  is  nearly  run,  etc., 

while  his  enraptured  spirit  seemed  almost  ready  to  break  away 
from  the  prison  of  his  feeble  body  and  be  borne  on  angels' 
wings  to  his  heavenly  home? 

At  the  Conference  held  in  Glasgow  October  6,  1875,  I  was 
re-appointed  to  the  St.  Joseph  District.  At  this  Conference  Rev. 
A.  P.  Parker  was  appointed  a  missionary  to  China.  For  several 
years  he  was  chiefly  supported  by  the  contributions  of  the  Sun- 
day-schools of  our  Conference.  He  had  been  four  years  in  the 
Christian  ministry  from  the  time  of  his  admission  on  trial,  his 
first  appointment  being  to  the  Maryville  Circuit,  and  all  of  them 
in  the  St.  Joseph  District.  From  St.  Joseph,  in  company  with 
Mrs.  Lambuth  and  her  son,  this  youthful  preacher  started  to  his 
distant  mission  field.  There  God  has  honored  him  with  an  open 
door  and  a  successful  ministry. 

At  the  Conference  held  in  Hannibal  in  September,  1876,  Bishop 
McTyeire  presiding,  I  was  appointed  to  the  Plattsburg  District, 
with  the  following  charges  and  preachers:  Plattsburg  and  Mount 
Moriah,  W.  H.  Lewis;  Osborn,  G.  Tanquary;  Weston  Circuit, 
W.  S.  Conner  (supply) >  Platte  City  Circuit,  D.  F.  Bone;  Park- 
ville,  A.  T.  Lewis;  Liberty,  J.  A.  Beagle;  Camden,  W.  C.  Camp- 
bell; Richmond,  G.  N.  Keener;  Millville,  C.  Babcock;  Mary- 
ville, T.  E.  Rose;  Palo,  J.  W.  Perry;  Gosneyville,  T.  R.  Hedg- 
peth;  Haynesville,  J.  A.  Hyder.  Within  the  bounds  of  this 
district  was  the  field  of  my  first  circuit,  which  included  all  of 
Clay  County  and  all  of  Platte  County  east  of  Platte  River,  now 
organized  into  four  or  five  pastoral  charges.  It  was  pleasant  oc- 
casionally to  meet  a  friend,  or  the  son  or  daughter  of  a  friend  of 
other  years;  but  many  had  passed  away.  Brother  Conner's 
health  failing,  Brother  J.  W.  Ellis — at  the  time  a  local  preacher 


348  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

— was  employed  to  supply  the  Weston  charge.  This  year  was 
one  of  much  labor,  with  some  encouraging  success. 

At  the  Conference  held  in  Fulton  in  September,  1877,  Bishop 
Marvin  presiding,  I  was  appointed  presiding  elder  of  the  St.  Jo- 
seph District,  with  the  following  charges  and  preachers:  St. 
Joseph — Francis  Street,  T.  J.  Gooch  (M.  B.  Chapman,  supernu- 
merary); Tenth  Street,  W.  E.  Dockery;  St.  Joseph  Circuit,  D. 
R.  Shackelford;  Forest  City,  William  Barnett;  Craig,  J.  W. 
Bain;  Hamburg,  S.  H.  Milam;  Wayneville,  D.  C.  O'Howell  (L. 
F.  Linn,  supernumerary);  Lamar,  W.  McKendree  Gillum ;  Sa- 
vannah, D.  K.  Tindall;  New  Market,  C.  A.  Davis;  Davis  Chap- 
el and  Mount  Moriah,  D.  F.  Bone;  Hopkins  Mission,  McGinnis 
Jeffries.  This  was  an  unexpected  appointment,  having  so  re- 
cently been  in  charge  of  this  district.  But  the  year  was  filled 
with  busv  labors  among  old  and  new  friends.  This  was  the  last 
session  of  the  Missouri  Conference  at  which  Bishop  Marvin 
presided.  During  the  Conference  his  only  brother  died  at  Lou- 
isiana, Mo.  They  were  greatly  endeared  to  each  other,  and 
the  bishop  was  deeply  bereaved  by  the  death  of  his  brother. 
They  have  no  doubt  met  in  paradise,  where  loved  ones  part  no 
more. 

At  the  Conference  which  convened  in  Macon  City  in  Septem- 
ber, 1878,  Bishop  Doggett  presiding,  I  was  appointed  to  the  Os- 
born  Circuit,  in  the  Plattsburg  District.  My  Sabbath  appoint- 
ments were  Osborn,  Turney,  Morrow  Chapel,  and  Stewardsville. 
The  pastoral  work  was  heavy  for  me,  the  members  being  scat- 
tered over  a  large  territory,  and  my  health  not  being  very  good. 
During  the  following  winter  and  spring  my  general  prostration 
was  such  that  I  was  not  able  to  preach  for  several  months,  most 
of  that  time  being  confined  to  my  room*  and  much  of  the  time 
to  my  bed.  Brothers  John  Stone  and  James  Potter,  local 
preachers,  kindly  supplied  my  lack  of  service  on  the  Sabbath ; 
and  under  this  arrangement  the  charges  got  along  the  best  they 
could  until  Conference.  It  looked  as  though  my  active  service 
was  about  at  an  end ;  but  I  believe,  in  answer  to  prayer,  with 
the  blessing  of  God  upon  the  treatment  of  skillful  physicians 
and  wife's  good  nursing,  that  the  good  Lord  raised  me  up  again, 
and  in  a  measure  restored  my  health. 

At  the  Conference  held  at  Louisiana  in  September,  1879,  Bish- 
op Wightman  presiding,  I  was  appointed  to  the  St.  Joseph  Dis- 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  340 

trict,  with  the  following  charges  and  preachers:  St.  Francis 
Street  Church,  E.  K.  Miller  (M.  B.  Chapman,  supernumerary); 

Tenth  Street,  W.  E.  Dockery ;  F Avenue,  to  be  supplied; 

St.  Joseph  Circuit,  D.  F.  Bone;  Forest  City,  J.  Bird;  Craig,  A. 
Spencer;  Hamburg,  A.  S.  Doak;  Waynesville,  H.  C.  Bolen;  La- 
mar,  D.  K.  Tindall;  Savannah,  W.  T.  Conwell;  New  Market, 
William  Barnett;  Gower,  J.  A.  Hyder ;  Fillmore,  J.  W.  Bain ;  A. 
P.  Parker,  missionary  to  China.  During  this  year,  in  the  midst 
of  abundant  and  useful  labors,  Brother  W.  T.  Conwell  was 
called,  while  yet  young  in  years  and  in  the  ministry,  to  his  eter- 
nal reward.  He  lived  and  died  well.  May  we  all  meet  him  in 
the  land  of  everlasting  rest! 

I  was  continued  on  the  district  the  three  following  years,  and 
was  then  appointed  to  Hundley  Chapel,  in  St.  Joseph,  in  which 
charge  I  continued  three  years,  when  failing  health  assigned 
me  to  the  superannuated  relation  for  one  year.  This  year  I  was 
Senate  chaplain  to  the  Thirty-fourth  General  Assembly  of  Mis- 
souri; after  which  I  was  appointed  to  the  Centenary  charge,  St. 
Joseph,  and  continued  one  year.  The  next  year  I  was  appoint- 
ed to  the  Conference  Trust  Fund  agency,  and  was  re-appointed 
to  the  same  work  this  Conference  year,  1889-90. 

God  has  permitted  me  to  live  not  only  in  an  eventful  period, 
including  more  than  half  of  the  nineteenth  century — a  period 
marvelous  in  the  history  of  our  country,  and  distinguished  for 
many  wonderful  and  useful  inventions,  with  which  the  civilized 
world  is  blessed.  And  perhaps  that  part  of  the  time  between 
the  years  of  1860  and  1880  furnish  the  most  interesting  and  im- 
portant data  in  the  history  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South.  During 
these  years  lay  representation,  Church  Conferences,  District 
Conferences,  the  organization  of  the  Woman's  Missionary  So- 
ciety, and  the  Church  Extension  Board  (including  the  Woman's 
Department)  have,  with  other  important  branches,  been  incor- 
porated into  our  ecclesiastical  economy. 

God  grant  that  our  Church  may  be  not  only  in  Missouri,  but 
throughout  its  entire  connection,  true  to  the  letter  and  to  the 
spirit  of  the  gospel,  and  to  the  doctrines  and  polity  of  our  fa- 
thers, and  continue  on  this  line  as  long  as  time  endures!  With- 
in these  twenty  years— 1860  to  1880— more  than  a  score  of  itin- 
erant preachers  have  failed  to  answer  to  the  Conference  roll-call ; 
many  useful  local  preachers  have  also  ended  their  labors,  while 


350  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

hosts  of  religious  laymen  and  godly  women  have  been  trans- 
ferred from  the  Church  militant  to  the  Church  triumphant  in 
heaven. 

The  names  of  many  dear  brethren  and  sisters  -who  lived,  la- 
bored, and  suffered  within  the  bounds  of  the  several  charges 
mentioned  in  this  paper,  and  some  of  whom  have  crossed  the 
last  river,  \vhilst  others  remain  to  work  in  the  Master's  vine- 
yard, are  remembered  and  will  never  be  forgotten  by  him  who 
is  now  writing  these  lines.  We  have  not  the  space  to  enroll 
all  their  names  on  these  pages,  but  when  the  last  great  dav  shall 
come,  and  the  "books  shall  be  opened,"  may  we  all,  with  our 
families  and  with  our  charges,  find  our  names  written  in  the 
Lamb's  book  of  life,  and  be  forever  with  the  Lord!* 

OUR  CHURCH  AND  MOBERLY. 

One  of  the  important  factors  of  the  successful 
progress  of  Methodism  is  its  power  of  adaptation 
to  the  circumstances  by  which  it  is  surrounded. 
This  remarkable  adaptability  enables  it  to  adjust  it- 
self to  the  existing  condition  of  things,  and  there- 
by gives  it  success  almost  everywhere  its  standard 
is  planted.  Defeat  is  a  thing  of  rare  occurrence, 
when  its  ministers  will  resolutely,  patiently,  and 
perseveringly  do  their  \vhole  duty.  We  see  the 
marvelous  results  of  this  wonderful  adaptation  in 
its  growth  and  development  with  the  people  of  this 
vast  Western  country.  The  history  of  its  success 
and  progress  is  interwoven  with  the  history  of  the 
country.  It  permeates  society  wherever  it  goes, 
and  elevates  the  moral  tone  of  the  people.  This  is 
known  to  be  true  in  every  place  where  Methodism 
prevails. 

Take  the  history  of  Methodism  and  of  Moberly 

*Rev.  C.  I.  Van  Deventer,  MS. 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  351 

as  an  illustration  that  Methodism  adapts  itself  to 
its  environment.  The  mixed,  heterogeneous,  and 
transient  character  of  the  population  of  Moberly — 
a  railroad  town  and,  like  all  railroad  towns,  notori- 
ous for  its  wickedness — is  very  unfavorable  to  re- 
ligion, and  makes  success  in  the  cause  of  Christ 
very  difficult — indeed,  impossible — without  divine 
co-operation.  Yet  Methodism,  though  small  at 
first,  has  gradually  advanced,  in  spite  of  all  an- 
tagonistic elements,  with  the  growth  of  the  town. 
When  their  house  of  worship  became  too  small  the 
Methodists  sold  it  and  built  another  of  larger  ca- 
pacity. When  that  became  too  small  they  sold  it, 
and  are  now  building  a  magnificent  edifice  of  larger 
proportions,  which  will  be  an  ornament  to  their 
growing  city,  and  will  reflect  great  credit  upon 
the  Church  and  their  indefatigable  pastor,  Rev.  T. 
G.  Whitten. 

We  find  a  piece  of  history  in  the  St.  Louis 
Christian  Advocate,  from  the  pen  of  Dr.  Vincil, 
written  about  two  decades  ago,  which  will  give  the 
reader  a  very  good  idea  of  what  Methodism  in 
Moberly  was  at  that  time ;  and  by  comparison  he 
cannot  fail  to  see  the  progress  of  »the  Church  to  the 
present  time.  He  says: 

As  an  item  of  Church  news,  I  take  pleasure  in  announcing  to 
your  readers  that  the  Southern  Methodist  people  have  erected  a 
good  and  tasteful  house  of  worship  in  the  town  of  Moberly. 
This  is  a  great  achievement,  in  view  of  all  the  circumstances. 
The  importance  of  the  locality  gives  character  to  this  most  suc- 
cessful enterprise.  Moberly  is  a  young  and  thriving  town  of 
several  hundred  inhabitants.  It  is  located  on  the  North  Mis- 
souri railroad,  nearly  150  miles  from  St.  Louis,  and  about  20 


35 2  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

miles  from  Macon  City.  From  Moberly  starts  out  the  west 
branch  of  the  North  Missouri  railroad,  which  runs  through 
Huntsville,  Salisbury,  Keytesville,  Brunswick,  and  up  the  Mis- 
souri River  bottom  to  Kansas  City. 

Moberly  is  destined  to  grow  into  a  city  of  no  ordinary  conse- 
quence as  a  railroad  center.  The  Hannibal  and  Moberlv  rail- 
road is  to  find  its  connection  here  with  the  great  western  thor- 
oughfares. Looking  to  the  future  of  the  place,  and  desirous  of 
providing  for  the  present  wants  of  the  rapidly  increasing  popu- 
lation, a  few  earnest  men  resolved  to  build  the  Lord  a  house. 
Every  thing  considered,  the  undertaking  was  a  heavy  one;  but 
there  was  a  heavy  man  in  the  harness.  The  preacher  in  charge 
of  Huntsville  Circuit  determined  to  make  himself  felt  in  that 
community,  and  during  the  past  Conference  year  went  to  work 
with  commendable  zeal  to  push  forward  the  glorious  cause  of 
"  church  extension."  Who  that  knows  Rev.  D.  H.  Root  will  doubt 
his  ability  to  push  any  movement  uphill?  Being  warmly  aided 
by  a  band  of  co-workers,  "tried,  true,  and  trusty,"  the  building 
of  the  Lord's  house  went  forward.  Though  many  prophesied  evil 
concerning  the  work,  and  said,  "  What  do  these  feeble  Southern 
Methodists?  "  still  the  house  was  undertaken,  carried  forward  to 
completion,  and  declared  ready  for  dedication  in  a  surprisingly 
short  time.  In  truth  I  was  not  aware  of  the  existence  of  the  en- 
terprise until  informed  that  it  was  about  ready  for  presentation 
to  the  Lord  of  hosts.  Being  honored  with  an  invitation  to  at- 
tend, and  lead  in  the  dedicatory  services,  I  visited  Moberly,  and 
found  a  neat  and  substantial  wooden  structure  ready  for  use. 
The  house  is  a  one-story  frame,  30  feet  wide  and  50  feet  long, 
most  eligibly  situated.  It  is  neatly  plastered  and  very  well 
seated,  though  the  painting  is  not  quite  finished.  Upon  the 
whole,  it  is  a  good  and  pleasant  house  of  worship,  where  the 
people  may  meet  and  serve  the  God  of  Israel  in  simplicity  of 
mind  and  sincerity  of  heart,  unaffected  by  the  presence  and  in- 
fluence of  style  and  gorgeous  display. 

On  the  Sabbath  a  large  concourse  of  people  assembled  in  the 
new  church  to  witness  and  participate  in  the  interesting  serv- 
ices. After  the  sermon  was  over  five  hundred  dollars  was 
raised  and  the  house  of  worship,  being  now  free  from  debt,  was 
declared  to  be  the  property  of  the  Lord  and  was  solemnly  ded- 
icated to  his  service.  Thus  another  house  of  prayer  has  been 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  353 

erected  as  a  resort  for  the  people,  whither  they  may  go  up  to 
wait  on  the  Lord  and  renew  their  strength. 

Let  the  reader  compare  the  frame  building  ded- 
icated by  Dr.  John  D.  Vincil  on  the  above  oc- 
casion with  the  church-edifice  now  in  process  of 
erection,  and  he  will  have  some  correct  idea  of  the 
progress  of  Methodism  in  Moberly  the  last  two 
'decades. 

REV.  J.  A.  MUMPOWER. 

The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  Missouri  has  no 
cause  to  be  ashamed  of  her  own  preachers.  They 
are  not  few,  but  many,  and  as  noble  a  set  of  men 
as  ever  entered  the  Christian  ministry — "tried, 
true,  and  trusty."  They  will  suffer  nothing  in 
comparison  with  the  ministers  of  other  Confer- 
ences, other  States,  or  other  denominations.  They 
have  filled  every  position  and  office  in  our  Church, 
from  the  lowest  to  the  highest,  from  the  circuit 
preacher  to  the  bishop,  with  efficiency  and  suc- 
cess. While  they  may  not  be  distinguished  for 
their  brilliant  talents  and  great  oratorical  powers, 
they  are  characterized  by  something  of  more  im- 
portance— deep  piety,  unswerving  fidelity  to  God, 
moral  courage  and  activity,  zealous,  indefatigable 
work  in  the  Lord's  vineyard.  Their  religious  in- 
tegrity was  thoroughly  tested  during  the  Civil  War, 
and  while  many  suffered  martyrdom  for  the  truth 
as  it  is  in  Jesus,  not  one  betrayed  his  Lord  and 
Master  by  compromising  his  faith  or  by  yielding 
one  single  Christian  principle.  This  fact  is  dem- 
onstrated in  the  life  of  him  whose  name  appears 
23 


354  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

above  and  who  has  given  a  brief  account  of  his 
labors  and  trials  in  the  Christian  ministry  as  fol- 
lows: 

In  April,  1862, 1  was  licensed  to  exhort  by  the  Quarterly  Con- 
ference of  Chillicothe  Station,  and  in  August  (the  9th)  I  was 
licensed  to  preach  by  the  same  Quarterly  Conference ;  Brother 
W.  T.  Ellington  being  employed  by  the  presiding  elder,  Rev. 
W.  G.  Caples,  as  pastor.  Brother  Caples  was  not  at  either 
Quarterly  Conference.  Hence  my  license  bears  the  signature 
of  W.  T.  Ellington,  preacher  in  charge. 

These  were  days  of  trouble  to  all  people,  and  especially  to 
Southern  Methodists.  Brother  Ellington  was  teaching  school 
in  Chillicothe,  and  after  our  regular  preachers  had  left  he  was 
employed  to  do  what  he  could  for  the  Church  at  Chillicothe 
and  in  the  country  round  about. 

The  fall  of  1862  I  was  employed  to  take  charge  of  the  Chilli- 
cothe Circuit  by  the  presiding  elder,  W.  G.  Caples.  I  did  what 
I  could  in  that  charge  for  one  year — kept  up  the  appointments, 
had  some  good  meetings,  and  organized  a  class  at  Brother  Will- 
iam Wallace's  (since  called  Zion).  The  cause  of  our  Church 
did  well,  and  they  kept  together  on  the  circuit.  The  Church 
never  did  disband.  So  much  for  what  a  local  preacher  can  do. 
After  my  time  expired  Brother  E.  Carlyle,  a  local  preacher, 
kept  the  work  going. 

In  the  winter  of  1863  I  was  employed  by  the  presiding  elder, 
Brother  William  Ketron,  to  take  charge  of  Milan  Circuit.  I 
went  to  work,  remained  during  the  winter  and  spring,  when 
the  war  troubles  became  so  great  that  my  friends  prevailed  on 
me  to  leave.  Brother  J.  L.  Wood  had  been  killed,  and  I  was  in 
divers  ways  threatened  and  annoyed,  was  closely  pursued  and 
dogged  all  the  time,  so  I  was  compelled  to  give  up  mv  charge. 
At  Scottsville  I  was  followed  out  of  town  by  a  drunken  fellow 
who  tried  to  make  me  go  back  with  him.  I  refu&ed  because  the 
town  was  full  of  men  just  like  himself.  He  then  drew  a  revolv- 
er on  me,  but  I  was  so  close  to  him  that  he  did  not  dare  to  use 
it.  By  presence  of  mind  I  was  able  to  overcome  him,  and  after 
giving  him  a  good  talk  he  left  me  and  went  back,  but  threat- 
ened me  as  he  left. 

There  were  some  local  preachers  on  Milan  Circuit  who  did 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  355 

not  leave;  among  whom  were  S.  S.  Hardin,  J.  Wattenburger, 
John  and  Alex.  Harmon,  John  W.  Duskey.  and  William  Jones 
who  kept  the  work  going  and  our  Church  intact  as  best  they 
could.  Brother  Ketron,  the  presiding  elder,  sent  me  to  Spring 
Hill  Circuit  in  1864.  He  was  soon  after  taken  sick,  and  was  not 
able  to  preach  any  more.  He  lived  near  Edinburg,  and  was 
much  beloved  by  all  the  people.  I  went  to  see  him  frequently, 
and  he  was  a  great  help  to  me. 

The  whole  of  the  responsibility  fell  upon  me,  but  I  had  good 
counselors  in  such  men  as  Brothers  Smith,  Conklin,  Ray,  De- 
vorse,  Bowen,  and  a  host  of  others  who  gave  me  help  in  many 
ways.  This  was  a  glorious  half-year's  work.  The  Lord  was 
with  us  at  almost  every  appointment,  in  reviving  his  work  and 
saving  souls,  at  Edinburg,  Antioch,  Gus  Creek,  Lillie's  Chapel, 
and  Ketron's  Chapel.  At  the  latter  place  we  had  a  revival  in 
August,  resulting  in  more  than  one  hundred  conversions  and 
about  the  same  number  of  accessions  to  the  Church.  This  re- 
vival was  far-reaching  in  its  influence.  There  were  converts 
all  over  Davies  County ;  also  Grundy,  Livingston,  and  Gen- 
try Counties.  Another  characteristic  of  this  revival  was  the 
power  of  God  manifested  in  the  meetings.  Men  and  women 
would  fall  prostrate  as  by  some  unseen  power.  Some  of  them 
remained  in  that  condition  until  they  were  converted.  Even 
members  of  the  Church  would  become  helpless  and  remain  so 
for  hours,  and  some  all  day.  I  have  never  witnessed  any  thing 
like  it  since.  Brother  Samuel  Alexander  came  to  my  help  to- 
ward the  close  of  the  meeting,  but  most  of  the  work  was  done 
by  the  lay  brethren  of  whom  I  have  spoken.  Truly  God  was 
with  us  in  very  great  power. 

We  had  war  troubles  here  too.  During  so  much  of  God's 
presence,  and  while  great  good  was  being  accomplished,  the  ad- 
versary was  busy,  had  his  emissaries  at  work,  tormenting  us  by 
wicked  soldiers  and  others,  but  the  Lord  of  hosts  was  with  us 
and  gave  us  the  victory.  This  was  another  stronghold  of 
Southern  Methodism,  and  they  never  disbanded  on  the  Spring 
Hill  Circuit.  It  was  from  this  circuit  that  I  was  recommended 
to  the  Missouri  Annual  Conference  at  Mexico  in  1864. 

That  fall  Brother  Joseph  Devlin  was  put  in  charge  of  Spring 
Hill  and  Gallatin  Circuits.  I  was  sent  to  Marysville  Circuit,  but 
could  not  do  any  thing  on  account  of  war  troubles.  I  crossed 


356  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

the  plains  next  spring,  spent  the  summer,  and  returned  to  Mis- 
souri in  the  fall.  I  assisted  Brother  Devlin  in  his  extensive 
work  under  Brother  W.  E.  Dockery,  the  presiding  elder. 

In  the  following  spring  Brother  Dockery  sent  me  to  the  Al- 
bany Circuit.  When  ready  to  start,  Brothers  John  D.  Vincil, 
who  was  stationed  at  Chillicothe,  and  William  M.  Leftwich, 
who  happened  to  be  there,  told  me  to  cut  down  the  bridge  be- 
hind me  so  that  retreat  would  be  impossible.  I  found  the  work 
disorganized  and  our  people  not  knowing  what  to  do.  But  the 
Lord  went  with  me  and  manifested  his  presence.  I  went  to 
work,  organizing  and  holding  meetings.  It  was  one  continual 
triumph  from  early  spring  until  time  for  the  Annual  Confer- 
ence to  meet.  Every  appointment  on  the  circuit  was  blessed 
with  a  revival  of  religion.  Many  precious  souls  were  con- 
verted, and  the  Church  strengthened  and  put  into  good  run- 
ning order. 

Here  also  we  had  trouble  from  those  in  authority  and  power. 
I  was  arrested  for  preaching  without  taking  the  oath.  They 
tried  to  incarcerate  me  and  put  me  in  jail,  but  for  fear  of  the 
people  they  did  not  succeed.  I  preached  frequently  when  I 
was  told  that  if  I  did  so  I  would  not  get  out  of  the  pulpit  alive. 
I  never  was  happier  in  all  my  life.  Brother  Dockery  stood  by 
me  in  all  these  trials;  so  did  my  many  friends,  and  I  started  to 
Conference  in  a  happy  state  of  mind.  It  met  at  Richmond,  but 
I  was  taken  sick  at  Gallatin,  and  did  not  get  there. 

By  the  Conference  which  met  at  Richmond  in  the  fall  of 
1866  I  was  sent  to  Yellow  Creek  (now  Bucklin)  Circuit.  Here 
I  had  over  two  hundred  and  fifty  conversions  and  about  the 
same  number  of  additions  to  the  Church — a  year  of  great  suc- 
cess and  prosperity.  From  here  I  went  back  to  Albany,  in  the 
spring,  to  answer  to  the  indictment  of  the  grand  jury  for  preach- 
ing without  taking  the  oath.  I  came  out  all  right,  and  finished 
up  a  prosperous  and  happy  year. 

The  next  fall  I  was  sent  to  Savannah  Circuit,  in  which  charge 
I  remained  three  years.  I  found  the  Church  here  in  a  badly 
disorganized  condition,  but  the  good  Lord  did  help  me,  and  in 
the  three  years  of  my  pastorate  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing 
the  Church  grow  and  increase  in  influence  for  good.  I  organ- 
ized two  new  Societies — Platte  Chapel  and  Bedford's  Chapel — 
though  the  houses  of  worship  were  not  finished  until  after  I 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  357 

left.  Here  I  found  friends  of  the  Church  who  stood  by  her  in 
all  times  of  trial;  such  as  Dr.  M.  F.  Wakefield,  N.  Farrow,  Rev. 
Alexander  Bedford,  J.  P.  Shoemaker,  N.  Bird,  P.  Richardson, 
and  others,  of  whom  honorable  mention  might  be  made.  Some 
of  them  have  gone  to  the  better  country,  their  heavenly  home 
for  which  they  lived  and  died. 

In  the  fall  of  1870  I  was  appointed  to  Weston  Station.  Here 
I  had  a  pleasant  year — was  married  April  27,  1871.  This  fall  I 
was  appointed  to  the  Gallatin  District;  served  it  two  years  as 
best  I  could. 

In  the  fall  of  1873  I  was  sent  to  Carrollton  Station  for  one 
year;  in  1874,  to  Gallatin  Station,  where  I  remained  four  years; 
then  to  Macon  City,  four  years;  Fayette  District,  four  years; 
and  this  year  (1890)  is  my  fourth  year  on  the  Mexico  District. 
The  Lord  be  praised  for  his  wonderful  goodness  to  me  through 
all  the  past  years  of  my  ministerial  life,  and  for  owning  and 
blessing  my  unworthy  labors  in  the  salvation  of  sinners,  and  in 
the  accomplishment  of  good!  By  and  by,  when  my  work  is 
done,  and  the  toilsome  strife  of  life  is  ended,  I  shall  meet  those 
dear  loved  ones  with  whom  I  have  been  so  delightfully  associ- 
ated in  the  service  of  God  on  earth — shall  meet  them  beyond 
the  rolling  river  in  that  bright  world  whose  sky  is  always  clear 
and  cloudless,  whose  sun  never  sets,  and  whose  inhabitants  are 
supremely  blessed  and  perfectly  happy  in  serving  and  praising 
the  God  of  their  salvation. 

REV.  GEORGE  C.  LIGHT,  D.D. 

In  writing  the  history  of  "Methodism  in  Mis- 
souri," we  cannot  pass^over  in  silence  this  great 
and  good  man,  this  gifted  minister  of  the  gospel, 
this  able  defender  of  "the  faith  once  delivered 
unto  the  saints."  In  view  of  the  high  estimation 
in  which  he  is  held  by  the  Methodists  of  Missouri 
we  feel  satisfied  that  the  following  information  of 
the  closing  scenes  of  his  life  will  be  read  with  no 
little  interest: 

In  many  respects  Dr.  Light  was  a  remarkable  man.     Possess- 


358  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

ing  naturally  a  fine  mind,  with  a  wide  grasp  of  thought,  he  used 
his  mental  capital  to  the  very  best  advantage.  Those  who  heard 
him  in  his  palmy  days  will  remember  how  completely  error  and 
false  doctrine  were  routed  when  he  brought  to  bear  his  well- 
mounted  battery  of  reason,  truth,  and  eloquence.  Perhaps  no 
man  in  his  day  wielded  a  wider  and  more  decided  influence  for 
good  than  did  Dr.  Light. 

In  person  he  was  commanding,  possessing  a  vigorous  consti- 
tution and  an  affable  and  courteous  address,  which  made  him 
a  welcome  guest  wherever  he  went.  Taking  him  all  in  all,  we 
shall  not  soon  look  upon  his  like  again.  But  he  is  gone;  his 
work  is  done;  and  calmly  and  peacefully  he  laid  aside  his  shield 
and  sword,  and,  delivering  up  his  parchment  to  the  Shepherd  and 
Bishop  of  souls,  he  exchanged  the  cross  for  the  crown.  The 
reader  would,  no  doubt,  like  to  know  how  he  spent  his  last  davs 
and  ended  his  life. 

At  the  Conference  of  1859,  held  in  Jackson,  Miss.,  he  reluc- 
tantly took  a  superannuated  relation,  but,  as  before  mentioned, 
his  age  and  increasing  infirmities  compelled  him  to  retire  from 
the  ranks  of  the  active  ministry,  but  his  active  mind  and  zeal 
for  the  cause  of  his  divine  Master  would  not  let  him  remain 
idle.  He  filled  one  appointment  every  month  on  the  plantation 
of  Mr.  William  Love,  and  had  also  offered  to  fill  the  pulpit  of 
the  writer  as  occasion  might  demand.  The  Sabbath  before  his 
death  it  was  my  privilege  to  hear  him  deliver  a  cogent  and  ear- 
nest discourse  to  the  servants  in  the  Church  at  Canton,  from  the 
text:  "Say  ye  to  the  righteous  it  shall  be  well  with  him."  He 
had  little  thought  that  in  two  short  days  he  would  go  to  reap 
the  reward  of  the  righteous,  which  he  knew  so  well  how  to  de- 
scribe. The  day  following  I  went  to  Vicksburg  in  company 
with  Dr.  Light,  and  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  holding  converse 
with  him  while  on  the  way.  During  the  conversation  he  com- 
mented beautifully  on  three  passages  of  scripture:  "Hearken 
unto  me,  ye  that  follow  after  righteousness;"  "I  have  seen 
an  end  of  all  perfection,  but  thy  commandment  is  exceeding 
broad;"  "And  thou,  Solomon,  mv  son,  know  thou  the  God  of 
thy  father,  and  serve  him  with  a  perfect  heart."  He  remarked, 
after  he  had  commented  on  these  passages  some  time,  that  if  he 
lived  to  see  the  next  day  he  would  be  seventy-five  vears  of  age, 
and,  so  far  as  he  was  concerned,  if  the  world  was  put  up  at  auc- 


1868-69.  Missouri  Conference.  359 

tion,  he  would  not  be  a  high  bidder.  His  conversation  seemed 
to  be  peculiarly  in  heaven.  He  repeated  several  beautiful  coup- 
lets of  poetry ;  one  on  procrastination,  the  other  on  man's  free 
will  and  God's  prescience,  and  also  the  hymn  commencing, 
"  Vain  man,  thy  fond  pursuit  forbear,"  expressing  a  regret  that 
this  hymn  had  been  left  out  of  the  new  Hymn  Book. 

On  reaching  Vicksburg  he  complained  greatly  of  a  pain  in 
his  shoulder,  and,  taking  him  to  the  hotel,  I  procured  some 
liniment  with  which  I  laved  his  shoulder.  He  then  expressed 
himself  better,  and  on  taking  my  Bible  to  read,  he  requested 
me  to  read  to  him  the  first  chapter  of  Colossians,  upon  which 
he  commented  most  beautifully  for  more  than  an  hour,  greatly 
to  my  edification. 

He  slept  quietly,  and  seemed  as  well  as  usual  next  morning, 
arose,  dressed  himself,  and,  after  kneeling  in  prayer,  desired 
me  to  read  the  fifth  chapter  of  Second  Corinthians,  saying  that 
it  gave  him  comfort.  He  dwelt  upon  the  passage:  "For  we 
know  that,  if  our  earthly  house  of  this  tabernacle  were  dissolved, 
we  have  a  building  of  God,  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eter- 
nal in  the  heavens ; "  and  also  with  evident  delight  on  the  sev- 
enth verse:  "For  we  walk  by  faith,  not  by  sight."  Also  on: 
"Willing  rather  to  be  absent  from  the  body,  and  to  be  present 
with  the  Lord ; "  "  the  love  of  Christ  constraineth  us ; "  therefore 
if  any  man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature;"  and  so  on  to  the 
end  of  the  chapter.  He  spoke  of  the  kind  of  bodies  we  shall 
have  in  the  resurrection,  and  the  locality  of  heaven,  remarking 
that  although  it  is  true  that  where  God  is  there  is  heaven,  yet, 
inasmuch  as  God  has  made  us  social  beings,  he  believed  that 
there  is  a  special  place  where  the  redeemed  will  be  reunited 
and  dwell  together  forever.  Speaking  of  the  body  as  the  taber- 
nacle, he  said  that  when  the  body  dies  the  man  does  not  die, 
and  when  we  look  upon  the  body  we  do  not  see  the  man — only 
the  outer  vestment — remarking  that  in  reality  it  is  a  very  little 
matter  for  the  Christian  to  die ;  it  is  only  to  be  absent  from  the 
body,  and  to  be  present  with  the  Lord. 

After  breakfast  we  went  to  the  Book  Depository,  where  he 
met  and  conversed  cheerfully  with  some  of  his  old  friends. 
We  parted  at  12  o'clock,  agreeing  to  meet  in  the  evening  at 
Brother  Clinton's.  After  dinner  with  Brother  Howe,  he  started 
to  call  on  Dr.  Marshall,  about  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  but 


360  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

before  reaching  there  was  taken  with  violent  pain  about  the 
region  of  the  heart,  which  proved  to  be  a  metastasis  of  rheu- 
matism from  the  shoulder.  With  great  difficulty  he  reached 
Brother  Marshall's,  remarking  when  he  met  him  at  his  door 
that  he  was  "almost  dead."  He  was  assisted  in,  and  after  being 
seated  and  given  a  stimulant,  he  was  somewhat  revived  and 
commenced  conversation  with  Brother  Marshall  in  his  usual 
cheerful  manner,  but  in  a  few  moments  his  head  fell  back  on 
the  chair  and,  without  a  groan  or  a  struggle,  his  spirit  passed 
away  to  that  God  who  gave  it.  Thus  departed  from  earth  one 
of  God's  faithful  ministers,  whose  name  for  years  was  a  tower 
of  strength  on  the  walls  of  Zion.* 

*  Dr.  Camp,  in  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

At  Jefferson  City,  Bishop  Kavanaugh  Presiding;  W.  M. 
Prottsman,  Secretary—  Preaching  at  the  Capitol  on  the  Sab- 
bath by  the  Bishop—  An  Occasion  of  Unusual  Interest  _ 
Statistical  Reports  Favorable  —  Increase  of  Membership 
2,000  —  Missionary  Anniversary  a  Success—  Missionary  Cause 
Growing  in  Interest  —  Also  an  Advance  Movement  in  the 
Sunday-school  Interests  —  One  Hundred  and  Forty-six 
Church-houses  —  Dr.  W.  A.  Smith  Delivered  an  Address  on 
Education  in  the  Interest  of  Central  College  —  Education  on 
Upward  Grade  —  South-east  Missouri  —  Also  South-western 
Missouri  —  Same  Country  Spoken  of  by  Alonzo  Dante  — 
Rev.  J.  A.  Murphy  on  Revival  Interests  —  Future  Prospects 
of  Kansas  City,  by  "  S.  "  —  A  Voice  from  South-west  Missouri 
Again  —  New  Madrid  Circuit  —  Marvin  Camp-ground,  Near 
St.  Louis. 


"^HE   annual  session  of  the  St.  Louis  Confer- 
1     ence  was  opened  by  Bishop  Kavanaugh  at 
Jefferson    City,    September    23,    1868.     W.    M. 
Prottsman  was  elected  Secretary. 

As  the  St.  Lotlis  Christian  Advocate  furnishes 
an  interesting  notice  of  this  Conference,  including 
important  statistical  information,  we  shall  give  it  a 
place  here  for  the  benefit  of  the  reader: 

On  Sabbath  during  the  Conference  there  was  more  than  an 
ordinary  degree  of  religious  interest  manifested  in  this  city  and 
in  the  country  round  about.  The  central  point  of  attraction 
was  the  Capitol,  where,  in  the  forenoon,  the  bishop  preached 
one  of  his  best  and  most  effective  sermons,  at  the  close  of 
which  he  ordained  six  licentiates  to  the  office  and  work  of  dea- 

(361) 


362  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

cons  in  the  Church  of  God.  In  the  afternoon  Rev.  S.  S.  Bryant 
preached  at  the  same  place,  after  which  six  deacons  were  or- 
dained to  the  office  of  elder.  Two  other  ministers  were  received 
into  our  Church  as  being  in  orders.  One  of  these  was  from  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  and  the  other  from  the  Northern 
Methodist  Church.  Sunday  night  Dr.  Smith  delivered  an  able 
and  instructive  sermon  at  the  Capitol.  At  the  Methodist  Church 
the  present  writer  preached  as  best  he  could  in  the  forenoon, 
and  at  night  Dr.  \V.  M.  Leftwich,  of  the  Missouri  Conference, 
delivered  an  excellent  discourse.  There  was  also  preaching  by 
members  of  the  Conference  in  the  Baptist  Churches,  of  which 
there  are  two  in  the  city,  one  for  white,  the  other  for  colored 
people.  Then,  the  churches,  school-houses,  etc.,  for  several 
miles  around  were  similarly  occupied.  In  the  afternoon  the 
writer  had  the  pleasure  of  preaching  to  a  large,  intelligent,  and 
well-behaved  congregation  in  Galloway  County  at  a  church 
opposite  to  this  city.  It  was  indeed  a  privilege  and  a  pleasure 
to  be  with  them. 

Conference  statistics  are  not  as  yet  complete,  but  as  far  as  as- 
certained the  following  may  be  regarded  as  correct.  The  aggre- 
gate of  members  of  the  Church  in  the  bounds  of  the  Conference 
is  sixteen  thousand  one  hundred  and  fifteen,  being  an  increase  of  a 
little  more  than  tu-o  thousand  during  the  past  year.  Adding  these 
numbers  to  those  reported  to  the  Missouri  Conference,  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  aggregate  number  of  Southern  Methodists  in  the 
State  of  Missouri  is,  in  round  numbers,  thirty-four  thousand,  a  lit- 
tle over  fire  thousand  of  whom  joined  the  Church  during  the  past 
year.  That  is,  the  increase  of  the  aggregate  number  during  the 
year  was  more  than  five  thousand.  This,  too,  in  a  Church  that 
four  years  ago  was  solemnly  pronounced  dead — certainly  and 
surely  dead — and  those  so  pronouncing  proceeded  to  minister  on 
its  effects.  "There  is  life  in  the  old  Church  yet." 

The  Conference  Missionary  Society  held  its  anniversary  meet- 
ing  last  night  at  the  Capitol.  Addresses  were  delivered  by  R.  A. 
Hatcher,  Esq.,  and  Bishop  Kavanaugh.  They  were  to  the  point, 
not  sensational,  but  argumentative,  and  characterized  by  a  deep 
vein  of  true  piety.  The  collection  taken  up  at  the  close  of  the 
addresses  amounted  to  a  little  over  nine  hundred  dollars,  a  large 
sum  for  the  time  and  place,  a  place  where  only  a  few  years  ago 
this  Conference  would  not  have  been  allowed  to  hold  a  session  at 


Si.  Louis  Conference.  363 

all.  The  aggregate  of  collections  for  missionary  purposes  in  the 
bounds  of  the  Conference  was  a  little  more  than  four  thousand 
five  hundred  dollars. 

The  interests  of  the  Sunday-schools  have  been  advanced  con- 
siderably, although  they  are  by  no  means  what  they  ought  to  be. 
The  number  of  schools,  teachers,  and  scholars  was  increased  dur- 
ing the  year,  and  the  reports  at  this  Conference  show  an  increase 
over  the  reports  made  at  the  last  Conference.  This  year  the  ag- 
gregate number  of  Sunday-schools  is  reported  at  one  hundred  and 
fifty-nine.  The  number  of  officers,  four  hundred  and  thirty  ;  teach- 
ers, nine  hundred  and  eighty ;  scholars,  nine  thousand  and  seventy- 
one;  volumes  in  library,  sixty-seven  thousand  and  ninety-eight. 

This  is,  in  some  aspects,  a  gratifying  report.  Still  I  must  in- 
sist the  numbers  in  each  case  are  about  one-half  of  what  they 
should  be.  I  must  insist  that  the  number  of  children  luider  Sab- 
bath-school instruction  among  us  ought  in  every  Conference  to 
equal  the  number  of  Church-members  in  that  Conference. 

It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  many,  very  many  of 
our  people  and  their  children  are  connected  with  Union  Sunday- 
schools,  organized  and  carried  on  under  the  agency  of  the  Amer- 
ican Sunday-school  Union.  So  that  many  more  of  our  children 
are  under  Sabbath-school  instruction  than  is  indicated  in  the  re- 
ports made  to  Conference,  as  these  reports  refer  only  to  such 
schools  as  are  exclusively  under  the  control  of  our  Church;  no 
reference  at  all  to  schools  of  any  other  kind. 

There  are  in  the  bounds  of  this  Conference  one  hundred  and 
fifty  local  preachers,  many  of  whom  are  men  of  strength  and  ex- 
tensive usefulness. 

There  are  one  hundred  and  forty-six  church-houses — few,  it  is 
true,  when  compared  with  the  number  needed,  but  many  when 
compared  with  what  there  -cere  at  the  close  of  the  war.  There 
are  eighteen  parsonages— very  few,  indeed,  in  proportion  to  the 
number  of  preachers  to  be  accommodated.  The  number  of  adult 
baptisms  during  the  past  year  was  nine  hundred  and  eighty,  and 
the  number  of  infant  baptisms  was  six  hundred  and  forty-two. 

This  morning  six  preachers,  men  who  came  well  recommended, 
were  admitted  on  trial  in  the  traveling  connection.  Two  of  these 
were  from  the  M.  E.  Church  (North).  So  it  seems  that  we  are 
advancing  a  little  in  almost  every  respect. 

In  writing  the  other  day  I  referred  to  a  few  of  the  older  mem- 


364  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

bers  of  the  Conference  by  the  names  then  given.  There  may  be 
added  the  names  of  Andrew  Peace,  John  T.  Peery,  John  R.  Ben- 
nett, H.  X.  Watts,  J.  C.  Godbey,  and  a  few  others  who  have  long 
gone  in  and  out  before  the  people  endeavoring  to  teach  them  "  the 
good  and  right  way,"  "  to  fear  God  and  keep  his  command- 
ments;" men  whose  record  is  on  high,  and  the  full  fruits  of  whose 
labors  eternity  will  make  known. 

Next  to  these  in  point  of  age  in  the  Conference — that  is,  in  the 
order  of  time  during  which  they  have  been  members  of  this  Con- 
ference— are  such  as  W.  M.  Prottsman,  T.  M.  Finney,  J.  M.  Proc- 
tor, W.  S.  Woodard,  S.  M.  Winton,  and  others,  who  are  now  per- 
haps the  most  active  members  of  the  body.  The  first  two  named 
are  very  efficient  and  active  members.  Then  there  are  other  men 
here,  such  as  Dr.  W.  A.  Smith  and  S.  S.  Bryant,  who,  though 
not  long  members  of  this  Conference,  have  been  for  many  years 
active,  able,  and  successful  ministers  elsewhere.  On  Tuesday 
evening  Dr.  Smith  delivered  an  address  on  the  subject  of  educa- 
tion generally  and  the  interests  of  Central  College  particularly. 
At  the  close  of  his  address  about  t-vo  thousand  dollars  was  sub- 
scribed to  the  endowment  fund  of  that  college. 

SOUTH-EAST  MISSOURI. 

The  design  of  the  following  article  is  to  give 
the  reader  some  knowledge  of  the  condition  of 
things  in  certain  portions  of  South-east  Missouri 
within  the  bounds  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference. 
The  writer  uses  highly  figurative  language  and 
striking  illustrations,  no  doubt  for  the  purpose  of 
arresting  the  attention  and  impressing  the  minds  of 
the  reader.  He  commences  thus: 

Did  you  ever  see  a  heavy  sleet  in  winter,  whose  weight  was 
such  as  to  bend  the  flexible  trees,  and  make  their  branches  pend- 
ent? Did  you  ever  see  the  freeze  continue  until  one  broad  sheet 
of  ice  overspread  all  the  country  round?  I  presume  you  have. 
Well,  then,  you  have  seen  an  ice-clad  country  that  can  be  used  to 
illustrate  the  condition  of  things  in  former  days,  in  relation  to  the 
M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  this  section  of  the  country.  But  I  sup- 


i86&-69.  St.  Louis  Conference.  365 

pose  you  witnessed  a  great  thaw  as  this  vast  sheet  of  ice  melted 
away.  So  likewise  the  Sun  of  righteousness,  with  his  radiant 
beams,  has  raised  the  temperature  of  our  religious  atmosphere 
until  the  great  sleet  has  almost  wholly  disappeared. 

Doctrines  adverse  to  Methodism  and  very  baneful  to  society 
obtained  footing  in  past  years  in  these  parts,  and  chilled  the  feel- 
ings of  the  people  into  a  frozen  state.  This  condition  of  things 
during  the  reign  of  terror  was  indeed  most  appalling,  but,  thank 
God!  a  better  state  of  things  has  come  about.  Our  Church  is 
now  doing  a  work  in  this  country  that  is  manifestly  deep  and 
broad  and  changing  the  whole  phase  of  things.  The  sentiments 
of  some  men  have  undergone  a  wonderful  transmutation,  and  in 
some  cases  their  hearts  and  lives  have  been  entirely  changed  by 
the  preaching  of  the  pure  word  of  God.  Other  men  have  been 
awed  into  respectfulness  toward  us,  and  are  yielding  to  the  relig- 
ious influence  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  though  some  of  them 
are  doing  so  very  reluctantly,  and  would  perhaps  gladly  have  it 
otherwise  if  they  could. 

It  is  a  little  amusing  to  hear  a  few  men  talk  about  our  Church 
being  erelong  lost  in  and  swallowed  by  the  M.  E.  Church 
(North).  But  at  the  very  time  such  observations  are  made,  with 
some  there  is  no  doubt  a  secret  wish  that  they  were  in  the 
Southern  Methodist  Church.  Just  as  the  fortunes  of  Joseph  in 
Egypt  were  succeeded  by  a  sequel  whose  power  and  dignity 
put  him  in  close  proximity  to  King  Pharaoh,  so  in  like  man- 
ner will  the  depressions,  persecutions,  and  struggles  through 
which  our  Church  has  passed  tend  to  her  elevation  in  moral 
purity  and  increasing  usefulness.  There  was  a  time  when  the 
life  of  Joseph  was  despaired  of,  when  they  sought  to  take  his 
life  and  destroy  his  influence,  when  they  persecuted  him  and 
confined  him  in  a  dungeon,  a  military  prison,  and  he  was  neg- 
lected and  forgotten.  Mourning  and  tears  were  spent  over 
Jacob's  lost  son.  But  blessed  be  God  that  the  dispensations  oi 
divine  Providence  were  such  in  Egypt  and  the  surrounding 
country  as  to  bring  the  lost  Joseph  to  light.  This  Heaven-fa- 
vored child  under  the  safe  protection  of  God,  who  has  plucked 
princes  from  their  thrones,  and  elevated  the  despised  and  neg- 
lected till  at  last  he  reached  a  place  of  honor  and  power  that 
secured  to  him  the  "  ring,  vestments  of  fine  linen,  and  the  use  of 
the  second  chariot  in  the  kingdom,  together  with  the  manage- 


366  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

merit  of  all  the  important  affairs  of  the  land."  The  day  of  fam- 
ine and  trial  came  on,  and  the  identical  Joseph  who  was  sup- 
posed to  be  among  the  dead  and  forgotten  was  the  dispenser 
of  the  substance  of  Egypt.  Inasmuch  as  our  people  have  passed 
through  similar  scenes  of  persecutions  and  trials,  is  not  the  time 
at  hand  when  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  will  be  promoted,  as 
was  Joseph?  Will  not  the  period  come  when  similar  promo- 
tions and  honors  will  crown  our  Church?  Will  not  the  provi- 
dence of  'God  so  change  the  times  and  transform  the  circum- 
stances as  to  place  a  non-political  Church  as  high  in  public  esteem 
and  in  honor  as  Joseph  was  promoted  in  Egypt. 

Will  not  God  dash  in  pieces  like  a  "potter's  vessel,"  the  sys- 
tematic and  legalized  opposition  to  our  innocent  and  non-sec- 
ular Church?  Will  not  the  unfolding  events  of  the  future 
bring  us  to  the  position  which  will  attract  as  many  eyes  as  gazed 
upon  Joseph  when  clothed  in  linen  and  decorated  with  gold  in 
his  chariot  of  State  ? 

How  strange  are  the  events  of  the  past!  Equally  singular 
has  been  the  movements  of  that  cloud  whose  emblem  hung  in 
momentous  import  over  a  people  as  mysteriously  led  through 
hardships  and  dangers  as  he  has  conducted  our  Church  through 
perilous  times  in  these  latter  days.  Yet  it  may  be  in  the  near 
future  when  it  shall  be  said  of  us:  "  Beautiful  for  situation,  the 
joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  Mount  Zion."  May  "  the  eternal  God  be 
her  refuge  while  the  everlasting  arms  shall  be  underneath  her!  " 
May  her  triumphant  course  be  successful  to  the  confusion  of 
enemies  and  in  the  salvation  of  millions  of  our  race — all  to  the 
glory  of  God ! 

Pemiscot  County  is  the  south-eastern  county  of  our  once 
free  and  happy  Missouri.  Before  the  inauguration  of  that  un- 
christian Civil  War  Pemiscot  County,  for  the  intelligence  of 
her  citizens,  for  the  spirit  of  morality  and  religion  manifested 
by  her  people  of  all  ages  and  sexes,  for  her  schools  and  svstem 
of  internal  improvements,  in  proportion  to  her  population  and 
advantages,  stood  behind  no  sister  county  in  the  State.  Her 
people  then  were  happy.  Then  there  was  no  political  proscrip- 
tion, no  iron  code  to  insult  and  crush  the  spirit  of  free  Amer- 
icans. Then  it  was  an  honor  to  be  an  American  citizen.  Then 
we  had  a  county  second  to  none  on  earth.  But  alas!  our  hopes 
of  a  glorious  future  sickened  and  died  within  us.  The  dark  pall 


1868-69.  «S^.  -Louis  Conference.  367 

of  anarchy  and  woe  was  spread  over  our  country.and  a  reign  of 
terror  was  inaugurated, 

During  the  four  years'  war,  Pemiscot  County  was  the  theater 
on  which  were  enacted  scenes  over  which  angels  might  weep 
and  devils  rejoice.  Freebooters  and  banditti,  taking  advantage 
of  the  helplessness  of  the  people,  plundered  without  let  or  hin- 
derance ;  and  a  soldiery  with  no  guiding  star  but  blood  and  booty 
laid  their  unhallowed  hands  on  goods  and  property  not  theirs 
by  gift  or  purchase;  and  oftentimes  the  death-cry  of  the  helpless 
*nd  defenseless  would  ring  out  upon  the  air,  while  the  soldiers 
and  murderers  cursed  the  spirit  as  it  left  its  tenement  of  clay. 
Thus  our  people  were  robbed  and  cruelly  put  to  death,  and 
when  the  clarion  blast  of  war  was  hushed  and  the  welcome 
sound  of  peace  was  heard,  what  a  scene  to  behold!  Our  people 
demoralized;  our  plantations  desolated  and  laid  waste;  the 
rank  weed,  the  rugged  brier,  and  the  thistle  taking  possession 
of  our  fields;  our  school-houses  harbors  for  owls  and  bats; 
our  court-house  the  rendezvous  for  sheep  and  cattle;  our  rec- 
ords burned  except  those  that  were  hidden;  our  levee,  which 
at  the  commencement  of  the  war  was  nearly  completed  on  the 
river  side  of  our  county  at  an  immense  expense,  a  complete 
ruin.  In  short,  devastation,  desolation,  and  ruin  were  written 
in  burning  letters  everywhere  and  on  every  thing. 

But  we  are  not  a  people  to  lie  down  and  die  in  despair. 
Under  the  promise  that  was  made  us,  that  the  government  of 
our  fathers  should  protect  us  once  more,  we  went  to  work  in 
good  faith  and  in  earnest  to  repair  our  wasted  fortunes  and  for- 
get the  bloody  past.  And  nothing  but  the  high-handed  proscrip- 
tion and  bad  faith  of  corrupt  men  in  power  prevented  Pemiscot 
County  from  taking  its  stand  in  the  front  rank  with  its  sister 
counties. 

Notwithstanding  all  its  drawbacks,  the  people  are  at  work, 
religiously,  morally,  and  physically.  Once  more  our  thorough- 
fares are  being  cleared,  and  our  plantations  are  turning  into  the 
garner  a  bountiful  supply  of  cereals.  Our  school-houses,  court- 
house, and  churches  have  been  repaired,  and  are  now  used  for 
the  purposes  they  were  intended. 

We  will  now  give  a  brief  statement  of  what  our  Church  is 
doing  and  has  been  doing  in  this  section  within  a  short  time 
past.  Rev.  Madison  Adams,  the  preacher  in  charge  of  this  cir- 


368  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

cuit,  and  a  faithful  old  soldier  of  the  cross,  held  a  meeting  in 
the  southern  part  of  this  county,  during  which  there  were 
thirty-five  accessions  to  the  Church.  In  this  neighborhood 
there  had  been  no  preaching  since  the  commencement  of  the 
war.  This  fact  alone  is  sufficient  to  show  that  there  is  a  Chris- 
tian principle  in  these  people,  which  only  needs  to  be  called 
forth  by  preaching  the  unadulterated  gospel. 

Again,  not  over  two  months  since  Rev.  C.  D.  Davis,  from 
Kentucky,  came  among  us.  Rev.  Adams  requested  him  to  hold 
a  series  of  meetings  at  New  Salem  Church,  in  the  northern  part 
of  this  county.  He  did  so,  assisted  by  Rev.  S.  Jackson  (Method- 
ist) and  Rev.  Tilford  Hogan  (Baptist).  His  work  was  arduous, 
but  the  reward  will  fully  repay  him.  He  has  the  honor  of  report- 
ing thirty-six  conversions  and  twenty-eight  accessions  to  the 
Church.  Mr.  Davis  is  a  man  of  good  talent,  and  is  a  bright  and 
shining  light  in  the  world.  At  Concord  Church,  near  the  cen- 
tral part  of  the  county,  preaching  was  continued  during  a  week, 
with  good  results,  Rev.  S.  Jackson  conducting  the  meeting. 

With  a  fair  chance  our  county  will  show  as  good  a  record  as 
any  county  in  the  State,  any  libelous  newspaper  report  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding.  We  have  been  slandered  by  news- 
papers, and  consigned  to  infamy  and  oppression  by  designing 
men,  without  benefit  of  clergy ;  but,  in  spite  of  all  this,  we  in- 
tend to  travel  the  right  road,  and  console  ourselves  with  the  be- 
lief that  when  \ve  close  our  eyes  in  that  sleep  that  knows  no  wak- 
ing we  shall  have  done  our  duty.  God  will  bless  the  right  and 
sustain  the  good,  though  his  people  may  meet  with  sad  reverses, 
and  pass  through  fiery  trials  and  sore  persecutions.* 

Further  interesting  information  is  given  respect- 
ing the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  south-western, 
as  well  as  south-eastern  portions  of  the  St.  Louis 
Conference : 

The  Conference  year  of  1867-68  is  closed,  and  the  ministers 
of  our  Church,  those  faithful  servants  of  their  divine  Master, 
have  gone  to  their  Annual  Conferences,  there  to  give  a  report 
of  their  labors  during  the  past  year,  and  to  devise  plans  for  the 
future  success  of  the  Church.  I  think  that  we  of«this  south- 

*  Meiosis  and  G.  W.  Carleton,  in  SI.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


1868-69.  St.  Louis  Conference.  369 

western  portion  of  the  State  have  reason  to  be  very  thankful  for 
the  condition  in  which  we  find  our  Church  at  the  close  of  the 
year.  Our  prospects  are  very  flattering.  The  spirituality  of 
the  people  is  more  alive  than  it  has  been  for  a  long  time. 

But  a  short  time  ago  the  moral  sky  of  this  portion  of  the 
country  was  overcast  with  dark  and  angry  clouds;  the  passions 
of  the  people  were  lashing  about  with  wild  and  savage  fury, 
like  the  waves  of  a  troubled  sea.  The  prospect  for  bringing  or- 
der out  of  the  general  confusion  was  indeed  gloomy ;  but  those 
faithful  ministers  of  God  whose  duty  it  was  to  labor  in  this  part 
of  the  country  took  a  survey  of  the  field,  and  no  doubt  their 
hearts  shrunk  within  them  as  they  viewed  the  desolation  of  the 
Church  and  country.  But  the  Spirit  said  "Go;"  and,  like  the 
prophet  who  was  commanded  to  prophesy  to  the  valley  of  dry 
bones,  they  went,  trusting  in  God;  and  although  some  of  them 
fell  on  the  way,  those  who  were  spared  pushed  forward  in  hum- 
ble obedience  to  the  divine  command,  proclaiming  the  gospel  of 
salvation. 

It  is  noAv  about  two  years  since  the  work  commenced,  and 
the  change  has  been  great  indeed.  The  dark  clouds  have  disap- 
peared, and  the  invigorating  influence  of  the  warm  and  genial 
rays  of  the  Sun  of  peace  is  felt.  Hence  Churches  are  being  re- 
organized and  built  up,  and  great  revivals  of  religion  are  taking 
place  in  various  parts  of  the  country.  We  have  just  closed  one 
at  Elm  Spring,  that  consecrated  spot  where  our  lamented  S.  S. 
Headlee  loved  to  labor  and  worship,  and  where  his  body  is  now 
peacefully  resting.  The  meeting  was  commenced  on  Saturday, 
August  28,  by  our  preacher  in  charge,  and  continued  several 
days  before  he  left  for  Conference.  It  was  still  continued,  un- 
der the  labors  of  some  local  preachers,  aided  by  some  brethren 
of  the  Baptist  and  Presbyterian  Churches.  Denominational  and 
political  prejudice  was  laid  aside,  and  those  who  had  been  wide- 
ly separated  in  feeling  and  sentiment  during  the  last  few  event- 
ful years  met  around  the  same  altar,  and  joined  hands  in  broth- 
erly love  and  true  Christian  fellowship.  I  do  not  know  the 
number  of  conversions  and  accessions  to  the  Church;  but  they 
were  quite  numerous,  and  mostly  young  men  and  women  who 
may  do  much  good  in  the  neighborhoods  in  which  they  live. 

I  don't  claim  that  the  great  change  which  has  taken  place  in 
this  part  of  the  country  is  attributable  altogether  to  the  work  of 
24 


37°  'Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

our  ministers.  There  are  many  good  and  true  men — ministers 
of  other  denominations — that  have  labored  much  and  efficiently 
.for  the  good  of  the  people,  and  they  should  share  in  the  cred- 
it of  the  good  done.* 

Alonzo  Dante  says  in  the  St.  Louis  Christian 
A  dvocate : 

I  must  be  excused  for  alluding  to  some  unpleasant  facts  which 
came  into  my  possession  while  I  was  at  Benton.  The  minister 
who  had  been  sent  to  this  work  in  a  very  short  time  became 
dissatisfied,  and  abruptly  gathered  up  his  effects  and  went  else- 
where. The  presiding  elder  was  not  consulted,  nor  anv  one 
else.  No  one  knew  of  his  intentions  in  this  direction  until  he 
had  gone.  Imagine,  therefore,  the  mingled  surprise  and  morti- 
fication of  all  when  it  was  understood  that  he  had  taken  "  French 
leave."  Thus  for  nearly  twelve  months  the  charge  was  without 
a  pastor.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that,  yet,  mature  reflection  may 
bring  him  down  to  the  stern  duties  of  a  Methodist  itinerant,  and 
cause  him  in  the  future  to  respect  Church  authority.  He  had 
been  sent  to  a  worthy  people — none  more  so,  I  am  assured,  in 
the  bounds  of  the  Conference — and  a  people,  too,  who  always 
take  great  pride  in  treating  their  pastors  kindly,  and  who  never 
fail  to  meet  promptly  their  financial  obligations. 

From  this  point  I  hastened  on  to  Charleston,  the  countv  scat 
of  Mississippi  County,  and  the  location  of  the  work  of  Mr.  Pitts. 
How  much  was  I  delighted  with  this  place!  The  finest  land,  I 
think,  I  have  ever  seen  is  around  this  town.  It  is  a  vast  alluvial 
prairie.  But,  not  being  a  real  estate  agent,  I  will  leave  the  land 
subject.  The  Methodist  church  arrested  my  attention.  Truly 
a  splendid  structure!  It  is  made  of  brick,  and  is  very  commo- 
dious and  handsomely  finished.  We  have  no  finer  church  south 
of  St.  Louis,  Arcadia  not  excepted,  nor  even  Caledonia.  All 
praise  to  the  Methodists  there,  who  indeed  are  a  noble  people. 
They  are  intelligent,  wealthy,  and  intensely  devoted  to  their 
Church.  I  do  not  blame  Mr.  Pitts,  their  excellent  pastor,  for 
being  proud  of  his  charge.  He  has  the  best  reasons  in  the 
world  for  it.  Meantime  I  have  every  reason  to  know  that  this 
regard  is  mutual.  Mr.  Pitts  is  highly  esteemed  by  his  people,. 

*W.  H.  Pipkin,  in  St.  Louis  Christian  Aavocate. 


1868-69.  ^-  Louis  Conference.  371 

on  account  of  his  excellent  qualities  as  a  Christian  gentleman, 
his  solid  and  efficient  abilities  as  a  preacher,  and  his  earnest  de- 
votion to  his  calling.  He  is  a  whole-souled  man,  full  of  gener- 
ous impulses,  genial  and  kind,  and  wonderfully  social  in  his  dis- 
position. He  is  a  near  kinsman  of  the  gifted  Fountain  E.  Pitts, 
of  the  Tennessee  Conference,  whose  fame  as  a  pulpit  orator  is 
so  justly  celebrated  throughout  Tennessee  and  Alabama.  He 
has  done  a  great  work  this  past  Conference  year;  revivals  al- 
most everywhere  within  the  bounds  of  his  work,  and  Sunday- 
schools  all  over  his  circuit!  Considering  his  aldermanic  propor- 
tions, it  is  curious  to  know  with  what  vigor  and  persistence  he 
prosecutes  his  laborious  duties;  and,  although  from  the  bleak 
prairies  of  the  North,  he  seem&  to  defy  the  swamps  and  low- 
lands of  the  South.  Ah  me!  if  the  ague  should  have  the  te- 
merity to  assault  him,  what  a  time  it  would  have  with  that  vig- 
orous constitution  and  that  robust  frame! 

When  I  tell  you  that  Methodism  is  the  prevailing  religious 
element  of  this  section  you  will  concur  with  me  when  I  say 
that  we  should  strive,  by  all  laudable  means,  to  foster  and  build 
up  our  great  interests  there.  We  must  recognize  the  inexor- 
able fact  that  the  growing  wealth  and  expanding  intelligence 
of  this  prosperous  region  demand  ministerial  ability  of  no  ordi- 
nary grade.  No  common  man  can  possibly  meet  the  wants  of 
such  a  community.  At  present  we  have,  fortunately,  a  strong 
man  whose  services  are  properly  appreciated.  Our  people 
know  how  to  estimate  intellect  and  good  preaching.  Next  year 
they  should  have  a  stationed  minister.  They  deserve  one,  and 
thev  are  amply  able  to  support  him.  Thev  have  a  splendid 
brick  church,  an  excellent  organ,  and  a  good  and  comfortable 
parsonage;  and, altogether,  I  do  not  know  a  more  desirable  field 
of  labor  than  this.  None  of  your  D.D.s  need  consider  them- 
selves humiliated  by  being  sent  there,  and  let  me  assure  you 
that  they  would  have  to  take  with  them  something  more  than 
their  imposing  titles  to  command  respect. 

Rev.  J.  A.  Murphy,  in  the  St.  Louis  Advocate, 
gives  a  thrilling  note  of  revival  interest  in  the  fol- 
lowing lines: 

We  are  passing  through  a  remarkable  season  of  converting 


372  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

grace.  A  deep  religious  awakening  is  prevailing  in  this  part 
of  our  Conference.  Nowhere  does  failure  succeed  to  a  faithful 
effort.  Scores,  and  even  hundreds,  are  bowing  at  the  altar  of 
God,  and  taking  their  places  among  the  lovers  of  the  "  Cruci- 
fied." Hoary  age,  behding  upon  the  staff,  treads  tottering  be- 
neath the  cross;  while  the  voice  of  the  children  is  heard  in  the 
temple,  crying:  "Hosannah!"  This  glorious  work  is  free  from 
undue  excitement;  yet  the  joy  of  the  believing  heart  often 
breaks  forth  into  an  audible  "Hallelujah!" 

Our  second  quarterly  meeting  for  Columbus  Circuit  was 
held  a  week  ago  at  White  Chapel.  This  church-house  has  been 
in  an  unfinished  state  for  half  a  score  of  years  or  more,  and  is 
situated  near  Basin  Knob,  Johnson  County,  by  which  name  it 
has  been  formerly  known.  It  is  now  creditably  completed,  and 
was  solemnly  dedicated  on  Tuesday  at  u  o'clock.  The  Church 
and  community  there  owe  much  to  Brother  James  Sanders  for 
this  honor  to  their  neighborhood.  Brother  R.  Minshall,  the 
pastor,  is  doing  his  work  nobly,  zealous  for  the  glory  of  God 
and  the  honor  of  the  Church.  The  last  act  of  the  meeting  was 
the  baptism  of  two  interesting  young  ladies. 

Brother  W.  R.  Litsinger,  the  preacher  in  charge  of  Welling- 
ton Circuit,  is  now  assisting  in  -a  meeting  at  Fairview,  where  a 
score  or  more  precious  souls  have  found  peace,  "  being  justified 
by  faith." 

In  Lexington,  where  I  now  write,  there  is  a  growing  desire 
among  our  people  to  be  wholly  consecrated  to  the  service  of 
God.  I  think  many  are  seeking  and  finding  full  redemption  in 
the  blood  of  the  Lamb.  At  this  date  upward  of  fifty  have 
united  with  the  Church,  and  more  than  sixty  have  been  hope- 
fully converted  to  God.  On  Sabbath  afternoon  of  the  quarterly 
meeting  Brother  Camp  received  into  full  fellowship  about  forty 
persons,  whom  we  trust  have  received  the  witness  of  the  Spirit. 
The  communion  followed.  Rev.  J.  A.  Quarles,  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  assisted  in  the  distribution  of  the  elements, 
while  many  of  his  Church  surrounded  the  table.  What  a  sight! 
The  more  we  love  the  blessed  Jesus  the  more  we  love  each 
other.  Loved  ones  whom  sin  had  hitherto  separated  now- 
knelt  for  the  first  time  together  to  receive  the  emblems  of  the 
body  and  blood  of  Christ.  Brothers  Camp  and  Shackelford  are 
untiring,  faithful,  and  full  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Bring  a  tribute 


1868-69.  »$^«  Louis  Conference.  373 

of  gratitude  to  the  feet  of  Jesus,  make  mention  of  his  love  to  us 
in  your  thanksgiving,  until  the  ascending  strain  of  gladness  be- 
low unites  with  the  swelling  volume  of  "  joy  in  the  presence  of 
the  angels  of  God." 

A  traveler  signed  "  S."  talks  through  the  Advo- 
cate in  an  interesting  manner,  thus  : 

Though  Kansas  City  is  in  Missouri,  it  borders  on  the  State 
of  Kansas,  and  may  some  day  cross  over  the  line  into  Kansas. 
The  town  of  Westport  is  four  miles  south.  Kansas  Citv,  a  few 
years  ago,  was  not  Kansas  City,  but  "Westport  Landing,"  on 
the  Missouri  River. 

Soon  after  our  arrival  we  found  our  excellent  friend,  Rev.  J. 
W.  Lewis,  the  pastor  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  this  city, 
and  occupying  a  fine  brick  parsonage,  which  has  been  erected 
through  his  instrumentality.  We  felt  greatly  at  home.  Brother 
Lewis  and  other  members  of  the  family  seemed  to  vie  with 
each  other  in  trying  to  make  us  comfortable  and  happv.  We 
enjoyed  the  contest,  as  Milburn  would  say,  hugely. 

It  was  Saturday,  and  the  first  thing  Brother  Lewis  did  was 
to  act  the  presiding  elder  in  making  out  the  appointments  for 
preaching  on  Sunday,  very  generously  leaving  himself  out  of 
the  ring.  Now  enjoying  something  of  an  immunity  from 
"firstly,"  "  secondly,"  and  "thirdly,"  he  is  ready  to  show  us  the 
city.  What  shall  be  said  of  this  young  "  Queen  of  the  West?" 
At  the  close  of  the  war  Kansas  City  had  about  six  thousand  in- 
habitants; the  number  is  now  estimated  at  about  thirty-five 
thousand.  The  principal  street  is  about  a  mile  in  length,  and  is 
well  built  up,  many  of  the  houses  being  four  stories  high.  It 
will  soon  be  rivaled  by  other  streets  west  of  it,  and  in  every  di- 
rection we  see  wonderful  displays  of  thrift  and  energy.  At 
every  point  of  the  compass  we  hear  the  sound  of  the  saw  and 
the  hammer,  and  see  the  brick  masons  diligently  applying  their 
trowel.  It  really  seems  as  if  thousands  of  people  had  gathered 
in  from  the  surrounding  country,  as  well  as  from  more  dis- 
tant localities,  to  build  up  a  great  city. 

We  ride  through  and  around  the  town,  and  on  the  farther 
side  of  the  hill  from  the  river  and  where  we  expected  to  find 
only  a  few  suburban  residences  we  see,  to  our  surprise,  what 
looks  like  a  town  of  several  thousand  inhabitants,  with  good 


374  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

sidewalks  and  paved  streets,  and  built  up  with  substantial  brick 
houses.  Patches  of  a  city  are  to  be  found  on  all  sides,  and  we 
predict  that  in  less  than  ten  years  these  detached  portions  will 
blend  all  harmoniously  together  in  a  city  of  one  hundred  thou- 
sand inhabitants. 

Kansas  City  has  perhaps  twenty  or  thirty  large  wholesale 
establishments.  The  property  of  the  city  doubles  itself  in  value 
every  year  or  two,  and  capital  is  coming  in  rapidly  from  various 
places.  The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  has  an  influential  position 
in  the  city.  The  members  propose  to  sell,  erelong,  their  pres- 
ent house  of  worship  and  lot,  preparatory  to  the  erection  of  a 
church-edifice  adequate  to  the  wants  of  the  large  and  increasing 
congregation.  It  is  evident,  too,  that  another  Southern  Meth- 
odist Church  might  be  established  in  the  city  without  taking 
any  thing  from  the  existing  organization.  Now  is  the  time  to 
push  the  enterprise. 

On  Monday  we  were  introduced  to  Brother  Cobb,  of  West- 
port,  and  also  met  with  Brother  Murphy,  the  presiding  elder  of 
Kansas  City  District.  Brother  Murphy  is  a  North  Carolinian, 
and  the  longer  you  remain  in  his  company  the  more  loath  you 
are  to  part  with  him.  Sight-seeing  at  Kansas  City  is  about  at 
an  end,  only  in  so  far  as  we  look  over  upon  the  hills  of  Kansas 
and  survev  the  little  town  of  Wyandotte,  not  forgetting  to  no- 
tice minutely  the  great  bridge  recently  erected  over  the  Mis- 
souri River. 

Think,  too,  of  the  Shawnee  Indian  Mission,  for  many  years 
superintended  bv  that  excellent  man,  Rev.  Thomas  Johnson,  who 
was  murdered  during  the  war.  When  we  used  to  read  of  this 
"Indian  Mission"  in  the  "Minutes"  it  seemed  to  be  beyond  the 
borders  of  civilization  in  the  "  Western  wilderness."  That  mis- 
sion was  only  four  or  five  miles  from  the  present  Kansas  City. 
We  are  here  now  in  the  heart  of  the  civilized  world.  Rev.  J.  T. 
Peerv,  the  pastorof  the  Kanas  Citv  Circuit,  lives  a  few  miles  east 
of  the  city.  At  this  delightful  sylvan  retreat  we  spent  one  night 
in  company  with  Brother  Murphy.  We  learn  much  from  Broth- 
er Peery  of  former  times,  and  of  the  present  condition  of  the 
Church  and  the  countrv. 

The  next  dav  was  spent  at  Independence,  a  place  of  about  six 
thousand  inhabitants,  one  of  the  prettiest  and  pleasantest  towns 
in  Missouri.  We  are  here  at  the  parsonage  with  Brother  Bryant, 


1868-69.  *S^-  Louis  Conference.  375 

the  pastor,  a  North  Carolinian.  The  Church  suffered  much  dur- 
ing the  war,  but  through  the  labors  of  Brothers  Pugh  and  Bryant, 
the  pastors  successively,  and  the  well-directed  efforts  of  the  pre- 
siding elder,  it  has  recuperated  rapidly,  and  its  present  prospects 
are  encouraging.  The  spacious  brick  church-edifice  is  a  credit  to 
Methodism,  and  the  parsonage  as  well. 

Having  now  seen  something  of  Missouri,  we  have  a  sublime 
idea  of  her  resources  and  destiny.  Lands  how  rich!  minerals, 
how  valuable  and  inexhaustible!  commercial  and  manufacturing 
facilities  how  grand  and  inviting!  It  is  estimated  that  five  hun- 
dred persons  per  day  come  to  Missouri  seeking  homes.  What  a 
field  for  Christian  enterprise!  How  every  phase  of  society  seems 
to  invite  the  influence  and  operations  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South! 
May  her  achievements  accord  with  the  purity  of  her  doctrines, 
with  the  excellency  of  her  discipline,  and  with  the  glorious  fame 
of  her  departed  heroes !  * 

A  voice  from  South-west  Missouri  makes  an 
earnest  appeal  through  the  Advocate  for  help. 
Read  what  he  says : 

It  is  now  time  for  the  St.  Louis  Annual  Conference  to  meet, 
and  of  all  the  questions  and  interests  they  have  to  consider  I 
think  none  is  so  important  as  the  claims  of  South-west  Missou- 
ri. A  rich  and  beautiful  country,  none  more  inviting.  Taking 
Vernon  County  as  a  stand-point,  we  find  a  vast  territory  that  is 
being  thickly  settled  by  an  intelligent  and  industrious  people, 
and  the  services  of  no  Church  are  so  much  desired  and  needed 
as  ours.  Two  good  ministers  are  needed  in  Vernon  County, 
and  can  be  comfortably  supported.  A  more  liberal  people  can- 
not be  found  in  Missouri.  Methodism  can  be  made  the  prevail- 
ing religion  of  all  this  country,  if  only  the  proper  effort  is  put 
forth.  It  has  the  ascendency  now  in  many  parts  of  this  region, 
yet  the  Conference  has  treated  this  and  adjoining  counties  as 
undeserving  notice.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  country  will  be 
districted,  and  the  interest  of  all  parties  so  considered  as  to 
make  it  more  equal  among  the  preachers  and  just  among  the 
people'.  The  question  may  well  be  asked:  "Are  the  districts 
arranged  and  manned  now  more  to  accomplish  the  glory  of 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


37^  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

God  and  to  promote  the  kingdom  of  Christ  or  to  suit  the  con- 
veniences of  men?" 

As  to  health,  where  can  you  find  two  healthier  counties 
than  Bates  and  Vernon?  That  chills  may  prevail  this  fall  over 
all  South  Missouri,  if  not  through  all  the  West,  need  astonish 
no  one  after  such  a  rainy  year.  But  we  would  like  for  you  to 
name  a  healthier  county  in  the  State  of  Missouri  than  Ver- 
non. The  whole  country  should  not  be  condemned  because  it 
is  sickly  in  some  parts  of  South-west  Missouri. 

As  to  a  good  support,  there  is  no  question  about  that,  provid- 
ed a  preacher  goes  who  is  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  the  Master 
and  has  the  work  at  heart.  They  need  an  intelligent,  working 
ministry.  The  intelligence  of  the  people  between  Fort  Scott 
and  Nevada  City,  Vernon  County,  is  equal  to  that  of  any  part 
of  Missouri  with  which  I  am  acquainted.  Before  the  war  such 
men  as  Revs.  J.  R.  Bennett,  Ashby,  Prottsman,  the  Headlees, 
operated  there.  Such  men  as  Senators  Peyton,  Waldo  P.  John- 
son, and  other  eminent  lawyers  lived  there  and  further  south. 

WTe  earnestly  hope  that  the  interests  of  that  country  will  not 
be  pverlooked  by  the  Conference  this  year.  Such  men  as  Dr. 
White,  J.  Beard,  Judge  Weyand,  and  J.  Shackelford  have  of- 
fered to  board,  without  remuneration,  the  Methodist  preacher 
and  family  all  the  year,  and  to  furnish  him  means  of  convey- 
ance, horse  and  all  necessary  equipment;  and  thev  are  men 
who  mean  what  they  say  and  never  go  back  on  their  word.  As 
to  accommodations  generally,  none  are  better  anywhere  in  the 
State.  Rev.  J.  Duren,  Judge  Weyand,  Mr.  Rider,  Dr.  Elevens, 
and  others  can  testify  to  these  facts.  Is  not  the  idea  wide- 
spreading  that  most  of  our  preachers  have  gotten  to  a  point  that 
raises  them  above  their  divine  commission  to  "  go  into  all  the 
world."  Nowadays  don't  most  of  them  choose  their  fields  of 
labor  and  manipulate  their  own  appointments?  or  thev  will 
kick  out  of  the  harness  and  won't  go  at  all.  Have  the  preach- 
ers of  the  present  day  the  same  self-sacrificing  spirit  of  those 
earnest  ministers  of  God  who  planted  Methodism  in  this  great 
country  of  ours?  Let  them  read  the  self-denying  life  of  Bishop 
Asbury,  and  then  answer  this  question. 

The  remarks  of  W.  M.  Williams,  the  preacher 
in  charge  of  the  New  Madrid  Circuit,  as  given  in 


1868-69.  Si.  Louis  Conference.  377 

our  Church  paper  cannot  fail  to  entertain  those 
who  are  interested  in  the  cause  of  Christ: 

I  am  just  now  recovering  from  a  spell  of  the  fever,  brought 
on,  I  have  no  doubt,  by  constant  preaching  and  labor  during 
the  past  five  weeks  of  hot,  dry  weather.  My  physical  health 
could  not  stand  the  strain  and  fatigue  incident  to  the  position  I 
was  placed  in.  I  have  no  local  help,  and  the  traveling  preach- 
ers in  this  section  have  all  they  can  do  to  cultivate  their  own 
fields.  The  fact  is,  there  are  not  preachers  enough  in  this  por- 
tion of  our  Conference.  My  work  is  sufficient  to  keep  two  able 
men  constantly  employed,  and  then  all  the  work  would  not  be 
done.  I  am  saying  nothing  now  of  the  country  beyond.  I  am 
constantly  applied  to  for  preaching  in  places  where  the  sound 
of  the  gospel  is  seldom  ever  heard,  and  the  Macedonian  cry  is 
still  heard  saying:  "Come  and  help  us." 

We  cannot  close  our  eyes  to  the  significant  fact  that  some- 
thing should  be  done  for  a  better  supply  of  the  preached  word 
of  God  in  this  section.  This  country  has  been  in  the  bounds  of 
the  Conference  for  years,  and  yet  it  is  only  here  and  there  that 
you  will  find  any  thing  has  been  accomplished  toward  bringing 
the  mass  of  the  people  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in 
Christ  Jesus.  This  is  not  the  fault  of  the  men  who  have  so 
faithfully  labored  here  in  days  gone  by;  no,  for  a  more  self- 
sacrificing,  unflinching,  and  devoted  class  of  men  cannot  be 
found  than  those  who  have  labored  in  this  field.  But  it  is  be- 
cause they  had  more  to  do  than  could  be  done  without  more 
laborers.  They  have  been  too  few  in  numbers,  and  they  have 
simply  worn  themselves  out  in  trying  to  do  what  was  beyond 
human  endurance.  I  am  aware  that  South-east  Missouri  is  not 
an  inviting  field,  that  there  are  sickness,  heat,  and  floods  with 
which  to  contend;  yet  shall  it  be  given  up  on  that  account? 
Are  not  these  hundreds  and  thousands  of  starving  souls  here, 
now  perishing  for  the  bread  of  life  as  precious  in  the  sight  of 
God  as  those  who  are  living  in  a  higher  latitude  and  in  a  more 
healthy  countrv?  Does  not  the  divine  commission,  "Go  ye 
into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature,"  em- 
brace those  living  in  low,  wet,  and  sickly  lands  as  well  as  peo- 
ple living  in  healthy  countrv?  How  I  have  wept  when  I  have 
looked  out  upon  this  people  perishing  for  the  bread  of  life  I 


378  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868-69. 

Previous  to  my  sickness  I  preached  every  day.  My  first 
meeting  at  Reedle's  Point  was  truly  a  season  of  refreshing  from 
the  presence  of  the  Lord.  Twenty-five  professed  religion,  and 
the  same  number  united  with  the  Church.  My  next  meeting 
was  at  Caruthersville,  where  I  preached  seven  days.  This 
meeting  was  one  of  great  power,  such  as  I  have  never  seen  be- 
fore. Eighty-five  were  soundly  converted  to  God  and  joined 
the  Church.  The  day  before  the  meeting  closed  I  baptized 
thirty-five  adults  and  sixteen  children.  When  the  meeting 
closed  there  were  between  thirty  and  forty  penitents  at  the  altar. 
I  was  compelled  to  close  in  order  to  meet  another  appointment. 
In  all  my  meetings  the  old  and  the  young  were  alike  the  sub- 
jects of  saving  grace.  Men,  women,  and  children  experienced 
the  converting  power  of  God. 

MARVIN  CAMP-GROUND. 

The  following  is  an  interesting  account  of  the 
origin  and  establishment  of  the  enterprise  indicated 
by  the  above  heading: 

Some  months  ago,  when  the  question  of  the"practicability  of 
holding  a  camp-meeting  in  St.  Louis  County  was  first  mooted, 
very  few  anticipated  that  it  would  be  held;  or  if  held,  that  it 
would  be  a  success.  The  idea  first  received  form  and  unity  in 
the  monthly  Conference  of  the  official  members  of  the  Church 
in  St.  Louis  District,  who  determined  to  make  an  attempt  to  re- 
vive that  agency,  which,  in  the  earlier  history  of  the  country 
had  been  so  signally  owned  and  blessed  of  God  in  the  conver- 
sion of  souls.  Some  doubted  the  propriety  of  holding  such  a 
meeting  near  so  large  a  city  as  St.  Louis,  fearing  that  good  order 
could  not  be  preserved ;  while  a  few  were  positively  opposed  to 
it  on  the  ground  that  all  who  had  a  desire  to  hear  the  gospel  had 
abundant  opportunity  by  attending  the  various  churches  scat- 
tered all  over  the  city  and  country.  But,  under  the  inspiration 
of  an  earnest  zeal  to  carry  the  gospel  into  the  regions  beyond, 
It  was  determined  to  make  the  attempt,  humbly  trusting  in  God 
for  his  blessing. 

The  grounds  selected  are  on  the  farm  of  Brother  L.  H. 
Baker,  and  are  situated  near  Bonfil's  Station,  on  the  N.  M.  R.  R. 
Nature  seemed  to  have  adapted  the  place  to  the  purpose,  and, 


1868-69.  St.  Zoom's  Conference.  379 

with  some  assistance  from  art,  it  will  be  one  of  the  most  ad- 
mirable camp-grounds  we  have  ever  seen. 

Brother  Baker  has  generously  dedicated  these  grounds  to 
this  holy  purpose,  and  has  given  them  to  the  Church  to  be 
used  as  such  as  long  as  may  be-  desired,  besides  contributing 
largely  to  their  improvement. 

We  trust  that  through  many  years  yet  to  come  he  may  live 
to  witness  the  annual  gatherings  of  anxious  crowds  of  earnest 
listeners,  and  hear  the  happy  songs  of  praise  to  God  welling  up 
from  thousands  of  consecrated  hearts.  There  were  on  the  ground 
seven  comfortable  board  tents,  and  between  forty  and  fifty  large 
cloth  tents.  The  pulpit  was  placed  at  one  end  of  the  inclosure, 
with  pleasant  seats  in  front  of  it  capable  of  accommodating 
about  three  thousand  people. 

The  religious  services  began  on  the  evening  of  the  nth  of 
August,  and  continued  until  the  morning  of  the'zoth.  During 
the  early  part  of  the  meeting  the  inclemency  of  the  weather 
prevented  many  from  attending,  in  consequence  of  which  the 
congregations  were  not  large.  Those  who  were  present,  how- 
ever, were  not  seriously  interfered  with  in  their  religious  exer- 
cises and  enjoyments.  A  large  tent  had  been  prepared,  afford- 
ing ample  protection  from  the  rains  when  the  congregations 
assembled.  When  the  Sabbath  came  the  clouds  dispersed  and 
the  bright  rays  of  the  sun  cheered  the  hearts  of  many  already 
rejoicing  in  the  inspiring  beams  of  the  "Sun  of  righteousness." 
The  congregations  on  the  Sabbath  were  very  large— estimated 
at  several  thousand — and  serious  and  solemn  attention  to  the 
word  of  God  pervaded  the  entire  assembly.  Indeed,  most  ex- 
cellent order  prevailed  during  the  entire  meeting. 

There  were  the  following  ministers  present:  Rev.  Joseph 
Boye,  D.D.,  presiding  elder  of  the  St.  Louis  District;  George  H. 
Clinton,  D.D.,  First  Church;  Rev.  C.  D.  N.  Campbell,  D.D., 
pastor  of  Centenary  Church;  Rev.  C.  P.Jones,  D.D.,  St.  Paul's 
Church;  Rev.  F.  A.  Morris,  D.D.,  St.  John's  Church;  Rev.  J. 
W.  Robinson,  of  Wesley  Chapel;  Rev.  J.  W.  Springer,  of  St. 
Louis;  Rev.  Wesley  Browning  and  Rev.  W.  C.  Godbey,  of  the 
circuit;  Rev.  W.  D.  Shumate,  of  Mount  Olivet,  St.  Louis  Coun- 
ty; Rev.  Ditzler,  Illinois;  Rev.  M.  Doggett,  St.  Charles;  Rev. 
Talbot,  of  Fenton;  Rev.  Lewis,  of  Galveston,  Texas;  Rev.  El- 
lington, St.  Charles  County;  Rev.  P.  M.  Pinckard;  Rev.  J.  H. 


380  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1868^69. 

Pritchett,  presiding  elder  of  the  St.  Charles  District;  and  Rev. 
Parks,  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

The  ministers  seemed  baptized  with  the  spirit  of  the  Master, 
and  labored  with  unabated  zeal  for  the  conversion  of  sinners. 
Indeed,  the  whole  Church  seemed  alive  to  her  responsibilities 
and  privileges,  and  on  every  side  might  be  heard  the  voice  of 
prayer  and  praise. 

The  results  of  the  meeting  will  be  revealed  in  eternity,  but 
we  know  the  record  will  be  glorious.  Many  of  the  children  of 
those  having  tents  were  happily  converted,  and,  indeed,  every 
tenter  realized  the  truth  of  the  promise:  "They  that  wait  upon 
the  Lord  shall  renew  their  strength." 

More  than  one  hundred  professed  conversion,  and  very  many 
had  their  first  love  rekindled.  We  felt,  all  felt,  that  it  was  good 
to  be  there.  May  we  all  meet  there  again,  and  yet  again,  till 
we  meet  in  heaven! 

The  occasion  has  its  lessons,  which  are  of  peculiar  interest — 
one  of  which  we  desire  to  indicate  as  of  special  local  applica- 
tion: It  orginated  in  the  idea  of  closer  fellowship  between  the 
different  charges  of  ttie  district,  particularly  those  of  the  city. 
The  meeting  developed  the  spirit  of  that  idea  and  afforded  con- 
stant and  signal  demonstrations  of  its  blessedness.  The  under- 
taking and  the  results  of  this  meeting  are  the  fruits  of  united 
counsel  and  confederate  zeal.  Such  a  sense  of  communitv  of 
feeling  and  interest  pervaded  the  entire  membership  of  the 
Church  in  the  district,  and  associating  its  resources  and  ener- 
gies is  felt  as  a  palpable  and  urgent  need  among  us.  If  fos- 
tered, it  will  contribute  to  an  unprecedented  growth  and  power 
of  our  beloved  Methodism.  It  demands  the  serious  considera- 
tion of  those  especially  who  hold  official  station  and  direct  its 
affairs,  whether  the  results  of  our  Church  work  in  this  city 
during  a  period  of  nearly  half  a  century  are  not  utterly  dispro- 
portionate to  the  measure  of  our  opportunity  and  the  possibili- 
ties of  our  resources.  Does  not  the  sad  and  discreditable  fact 
continue  from  year  to  year,  and  still  exist?  If  we  shall  inquire 
for  the  causes,  may  it  not  be  in  fact  and  largely  because  the 
very  genius  of  Methodism  is  overlooked?  It  is  the  peculiarity 
of  Methodist  organism  that  it  is  connectional  and  not  congrega- 
tional. The  spirit  of  pre-eminent  fellowship  is,  therefore,  a  ne- 
cessity to  its  very  conservation.  It  is  the  bond  of  cohesion  and 


1868-69.  ^-  -Louis  Conference.  381 

at  the  same  time  the  motive  power  of  the  efficiency  of  the  sys- 
tem. A  due  recognition  and  appreciation  of  this  radical  princi- 
ple of  Methodist  economy  would  put  Methodism  here  and  every- 
where in  the  foreground  of  evangelical  power  and  success. 
Our  church-houses  would  multiply  and  our  missionary  opera- 
tions ramify  the  entire  city  and  surrounding  country.  The 
pulpit  would  augment  its  power,  and  the  assemblies  of  our 
Israel,  at  stated  services,  as  well  as  o'n  special  occasions,  would 
constantly  illustrate  the  blessedness  and  good  fruits  of  the 
"  unity  of  the  Spirit  in  the  bonds  of  peace."  * 

*  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 
MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Bishop  Pierce,  President;  J.  D.  Vincil,  Secretary— Schools  and 
Colleges  Doing  Well— Interest  in  Missionary  Cau»e— Sun- 
day -  schools  Improving  —  Church  Literature  Circulated 

Death  of  Rev.  Henry  H.  Hedgpeth— His  Memoir— District 
Reports  of  Presiding  Elders  Contain  Historic  Information- 
Report  of  Plattsburg  District,  by  Rev.  S.  W.  Cope— Report 
of  St.  Charles  District,  by  Rev.  A.  Monroe— An  Autobio- 
graphical Sketch  of  the  Life  and  Labors  of  J.  H.  Ledbet- 
ter — His  Position  in  the  Ministry— A  Biographical  Sketch  of 
Rev.  George  J.  Warren,  Given  by  Himself — The  Life  and 
Character  of  Rev.  John  Thatcher,  by  Rev.  G.  W.  Hughes. 

"pISHOP  PIERCE  opened  the  fifty-third  session 
•*-'  of  the  Missouri  Conference  at  Chillicothe, 
Mo.,  September  15,  1869;  John  D.  Vincil,  Secre- 
tary. 

We  learn  from  the  reports  of  the  different  com- 
mittees that  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  is  moving 
successfully  in  all  the  departments  of  her  impor- 
tant work.  The  various  schools  and  colleges  of 
the  Church  are  represented  as  doing  well.  It  is 
very  gratifying  to  see  the  growing  interest  of  the 
Church  in  relation  to  this  vital  question.  A  Chris- 
tian education  elevates  the  Church  to  an  influential 
position,  and  gives  her  durability  and  permanence. 
Additional  attention  is  also  given  to  the  missionary 
enterprise,  manifesting  some  appreciation  of  its 
commanding  importance  as  the  great  work  to 
(382) 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  383 

which  the  Church  of  God  is  divinely  called.  Like- 
wise, 'more  active  efforts  are  being  made  to  ad- 
vance the  interests  of  the  Sunday-school  cause, 
which  is  second  only  to  the  divine  commission  to 
preach  the  gospel;  for  what  is  preaching  the  gos- 
pel but  teaching  the  gospel,  which  is  the  legiti- 
mate work  of  the  Sunday-school?  They  seem  also 
convinced  of  the  duty  of  patronizing  our  own 
Church  literature.  The  perpetuation  of  Method- 
ism in  its  simplicity,  purity,  and  power  depends 
greatly  on  our  people  circulating  and  reading  the 
newspapers,  periodicals,  and  books  of  our  Church, 
whose  literature  compares  favorably  with  that  of 
any  other  Church,  or  with  the  secular  literature  of 
the  country.  Years  ago  it  was  customary  for  the 
preachers  to  carry  these  publications  around  with 
them  on  their  circuits  and  sell  them  to  persons 
whom  they  visited.  As  the  result  you  might  see 
our  books  in  almost  all  the  Methodist  houses  on  the 
circuit.  Hence  our  people  were  well -instructed 
and  intelligent  Methodists,  and  were  not  easily  car- 
ried away  by  false  teaching  and  the  vain  and  fool- 
ish philosophy  of  this  godless  and  sin-loving  world. 
But  has  not  this  custom  passed  away  to  a  large  ex- 
tent, like  many  other  good  things  with  which  our 
Church  was  once  blessed? 

The    increase    in   membership  was   nearly  two 
thousand,  and  the  future  prospect  hopeful. 

One    death   this  year,   and  we   give  below   his 
memoir  as  read  before  the  Conference : 

Henry  II.  Hedgpeth  was  born  in  Green  County,  Ky.,  June 


384  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

5,  1832.  In  1837  he  removed  with  his  parents  to  Buchanan 
County,  Mo.,  and  in  1841  to  Nodaway,  an  adjoining  county. 

Brother  Hedgpeth  enjoyed  the  advantages  of  an  early  relig- 
ious education,  and  at  the  age  of  seventeen  years  he  became 
deeply  and  thoroughly  awakened  to  the  sense  of  his  guilt  and 
danger  as  a  sinner.  With  penitence  and  tears  he  sought  and 
obtained  the  forgiveness  of  his  sins  by  faith  in  Jesus  Christ.  His 
conversion  was  clear  and  satisfactory,  and  its  genuineness  was 
well  attested  by  a  subsequent  life  remarkable  for  its  devotion 
to  God  and  his  cause.  Soon  after  his  conversion  he  became 
deeply  and  solemnly  impressed  that  it  was  his  duty  to  preach 
the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God.  This  feeling  of  duty  was  not  a 
mere  sense  of  obligation  to  do  good  in  a  general  way,  but  the 
line  of  duty  was  made  plain  before  his  face,  and  a  clear  convic- 
tion was  wrought  upon  his  heart,  "Woe  is  unto  me,  if  I  preach 
not  the  gospel." 

Having  received  license  to  preach  and  being  properly  rec- 
ommended, he  was  admitted  on  trial  into  the  traveling  connec- 
tion bv  the  Missouri  Conference  at  its  session  in  the  city  of  St. 
Joseph,  in  the  year  1852.  Thus  before  he  had  reached  his  ma- 
jority he  entered  that  work  which  for  more  than  sixteen  years 
commanded  the  energies  of  his  whole  being.  In  1852  he  was 
appointed  to  the  Weston  Circuit.  He  traveled  this  circuit  two 
years.  In  1854  he  was  appointed  to  Yellow  Creek  Mission;  in 
1855,  to  Paris  Circuit;  in  1856,  to  Oregon  Mission,  where  he  con- 
tinued two  years.  In  1858  he  was  transferred  to  the  Kansas 
Conference,  where  he  continued  to  perform  important  service 
for  the  Church  until  late  in  the  year  1861,  when  the  cloud  of 
war  having  fully  burst  upon  our  country,  he  found  it  altogether 
impracticable  to  continue  the  work  in  Kansas;  and  so  he  re- 
turned to  Missouri  to  remain  until  the  storm  should  be  over- 
past. In  1863  he  was  appointed  to  St.  Joseph  Station.  Here  he 
did  much  valuable  service,  and  will  long  live  in  the  memories 
of  the  people  of  that  charge.  In  1864  he  was  appointed  presid- 
ing elder  of  the  St.  Joseph  District.  He  continued  two  years 
on  this  district,  discharging  with  great  acceptability  the  duties 
appertaining  to  his  office.  The  General  Conference  having 
dissolved  the  Kansas  Conference,  and  having  attached  all  that 
portion  of  it  lying  north  of  the  Kansas  River  to  the  Missouri 
Conference  he  was,  in  1866,  appointed  to  the  Leavenworth  Dis- 


1869-70.  Afhsouri  Conference.  385 

trict.  This  was  a  large  and  important  field  of  labor.  In  1867 
he  was  appointed  to  the  Savannah  District,  composed  of  a  part 
of  his  former  district  and  the  northern  end  of  the  St.  Joseph 
District.  To  this  district  he  was  returned  in  1868,  but  before  he 
had  quite  completed  the  first  round  he  was  stricken  down  by 
disease.  He  was  taken  sick  about  the  22d  day  of  November. 
By  a  persistent  effort  he  succeeded  in  reaching  the  house  of 
Sister  Wilson,  near  Grantville,  Kan.,  the  widow  of  the  late  Rev. 
Mr.  Wilson,  formerly  a  member  of  the  Kansas  Conference. 
His  heart  was  filled  with  thankfulness  to  God  when  he  found 
himself  at  the  house  of  Sister  Wilson.  Soon  the  symptoms  of 
typhoid  fever  became  clearly  marked,  and  for  more  than  twelve 
long  weeks  (eighty-five  days)  he  languished  under  that  disease 
until  wasted  to  a  mere  skeleton.  On  the  evening  of  the  i5th  of 
February,  1869,  having  ruptured  a  blood-vessel  by  a  slight  cough, 
he  passed  away  from  earth  to  join  the  general  assembly  ana 
Church  of  the  First-born  whose  names  are  written  in  heaven. 

During  his  long  and  painful  illness  he  received  from  his 
brother,  Rev.  T.  B.  Hedgpeth,  and  the  excellent  family  with 
whom  he  was  sick  every  attention  that  love  and  tenderness 
could  suggest.  With  him  patience  had  a  perfect  work.  No 
word  of  complaint  fell  from  his  lips.  He  suffered  as  seeing 
Him  that  is  invisible.  He  was  entirely  resigned  to  the  will  of 
God,  ready  to  depart  and  be  with  Christ,  but  willing  to  remain 
a  little  while  longer  that  he  might  accomplish  some  more  good 
in  the  world.  During  his  sickness  his  faith  in  God  was  un- 
shaken, and  he  was  filled  with  comfort  in  the  Holy  Ghost.  He 
was  at  times  unspeakably  happy ;  tears  of  joy  would  flow  down 
his  wasted  cheeks,  and  at  times  when  visions  of  heaven  would 
break  upon  him  he  would  shout  aloud  for  joy. 

As  a  Christian  Brother  Hedgpeth  presented  a  life  of  most 
beautiful  consistency.  He  gave  evidence  of  his  love  for  the 
Master  by  keeping  his  commandments.  He  cultivated  diligent- 
ly his  own  heart,  and  those  who  knew  him  most  intimately  saw 
richly  developed  in  him  the  fruits  and  virtues  of  our  holy  re- 
ligion. 

As  a  preacher  he  was  a  man  of  one  work.     With  his  con- 
victions of  duty  he  was  ready  for  any  field  of  labor  to  which  he 
might  be  assigned.     During  more  than   sixteen   years  of  his 
itinerant  labor  he  was  never  heard  to  complain  of  an  appoint- 
25 


386  Methodism  in  Missouri  1869-70. 

merit,  although  he  filled  some  of  the  most  difficult  and  laborious 
in  the  Conference.  His  early  educational  advantages  were  mea- 
ger, but  having  given  himself  to  the  ministry,  he  studied  to 
make  himself  a  workman  that  needed  not  to  be  ashamed,  and 
the  writer  of  this  believes  that  he  has  known  but  few  men  who 
at  the  age  of  thirty-six  knew  so  much  as  did  Henry  H.  Hedg- 
peth.  As  an  expositor  of  the  word  of  life  he  might  well  be 
ranked  among  the  first  men  of  the  Church.  To  the  intelligent, 
thinking,  and  attentive  listener  it  was  a  great  privilege  to  hear 
him  preach.  Nor  was  his  usefulness  as  a  preacher  confined  to 
a  few ;  his  method  of  presenting  the  great  truths  of  the  gospel 
was  so  simple  and  clear  that  all  the  people  heard  him  gladly 
and  were  edified.  Long  will  he  live  in  the  memories  of  the 
people  whom  he  so  faithfully  served. 

In  1853  he  was  married  to  Miss  India  A.  Kenion,  an  amiable 
and  excellent  Christian  woman,  who  had  preceded  him  several 
years  to  the  better  country.  They  now  sleep  side  by  side  in  the 
cemetery  at  Fillmore,  in  Anderson  County,  Mo.  There  remains 
to  them  a  little  daughter,  whom  we  commend  to  the  sympathy 
and  prayers  of  the  Church.  W.  M.  RUSH,  Chairman. 

There  is  much  that  is  historic  in  the  reports  of 
the  presiding  elders,  who  give  a  faithful  representa- 
tion of  their  respective  districts.  By  so  doing  they 
furnish  the  desired  information  respecting  all  the 
preachers  who  are  laboring  in  their  districts  as 
well  as  what  they  are  accomplishing  in  the  work  of 
the  ministry,  also  respecting  the  spiritual  state  and 
religious  condition  of  the  Church.  While  the  re- 
ports of  the  pastors  are  generally  short,  detached, 
and  separate,  the  presiding  elders  give  a  con- 
nected and  comprehensive  view  of  the  whole  field. 

PLATTSBURG  DISTRICT. 

S.  W.  Cope,  presiding  elder,  thus  writes  of  his 
work  on  this  district: 

I  commenced  my  first  .round  and  year's  .labor  on  the  Came- 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  387 

ron  Mission;  Rev.  J.  B.  Jewell,  preacher  in  charge.  I  found 
him  at  his  post  ready  to  devote  his  whole  time  and  talent  to  the 
work  and  interest  of  the  mission.  The  Lord  graciously  blessed 
us  with  his  presence  and  divine  power  in  the  revival  of  his 
work,  convicting  and  converting  sinners,  and  in  the  sanctifica- 
tion  of  his  people  to  a  holier  and  higher  Christian  life.  It  was 
a  timely  effort  and  a  precious  meeting  for  the  Society  at  Par- 
rott's  School-house,  inspiring  both  preacher  and  people  with 
confidence  and  the  hope  of  abundant  success  this  year.  Seven- 
teen sorrowing  penitents  found  peace  in  believing,  and  were 
happily  translated  into  the  kingdom  of  light  and  life  and  of 
great  power. 

Next  I  went  to  the  Stewartsville  Circuit,  where  I  met  the  pas- 
tor, Rev.  C.  W.  Sanford,  who  had  preached  the  night  before 
and  was  already  anticipating  a  good  meeting.  His  expectations 
were  realized  and  prayers  answered  in  t\vo  happv  conversions, 
seven  additions  to  the  Church,  and  a  general  and  hopeful  re- 
vival of  the  membership.  I  received  a  letter  from  Brother  San- 
ford  a  short  time  since.  He  says:  "The  condition  of  the 
charge  is  tolerably  good.  Not  so  much  vital  godliness  as  I 
could  wish,  yet  I  am  hopeful  as  to  the  future." 

Rev.  W.  L.  Blackwell  is  pastor  of  the  Breckenridge  Circuit. 
He  had  been  sick  for  weeks,  consequently  had  not  been  round 
his  circuit.  He  joined  me  on  my  way  to  my  quarterly  meeting. 
Few  were  present  at  the  commencement  of  the  meeting,  and 
the  financial  report  meager.  As  the  meetings  progressed  the 
congregations  continued  to  increase,  with  increasing  spiritual 
interest.  We  gained  something  over  the  enemy,  but  the  victo- 
ry was  not  complete.  Two  pledged  themselves  to  the  service 
of  God,  and  promised  that  they  would  meet  us  in  heaven.  The 
preacher  is  entering  upon  his  work  with  a  zeal  and  fixedness  of 
purpose  that  generally  insure  success  and  inspire  confidence  in 
the  members  of  the  Church. 

This  is  the  second  year  of  Rev.  D.  F.  Bone  on  the  Camden 
Circuit.  As  his  labors  have  been  crowned  with  success  in  the 
past,  we  hope  it  will  be  the  same,  only  more  abundant,  in  the 
future.  The  quarterly  meeting  was  attended  with  some  inter- 
est. Two  persons  joined  by  letter  and  one  adult  baptized.  We 
hope  the  bread  cast  upon  the  waters  may  be  gathered  after 
many  days,  and  the  good  seed  sown  produce  abundant  fruit. 


388  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

One  young  lady  asked  an  interest  in  the  prayers,  which  we  hope 
may  be  answered  in  her  salvation. 

The  quarterly  meeting  for  the  Liberty  Circuit  was  held  at 
Missouri  City.  The  people  of  this  circuit  may  consider  them- 
selves fortunate  in  having  for  their  preacher  this  vear  Rev. 
Jesse  Bird.  He  is  equally  fortunate  in  serving  a  people  so 
kind  and  generous,  so  worthy  and  appreciative,  so  able  and  will- 
ing to  support  the  ministry  and  the  benevolent  institutions  of 
the  Church.  Financial  claims  nearly  full.  The  religious  serv- 
ices were  a  success.  A  revival  would  no  doubt  have  been  the 
immediate  result  could  the  meeting  have  been  protracted. 

Rev.  W.  P.  Wilson  is  pastor  of  Haynesville  Circuit.  The  quar- 
terly meeting  was  at  Haynesville.  There  seemed  to  be  a  revival 
influence  from  the  first.  The  prospects  were  more  and  more  en- 
couraging until  Monday  afternoon,  when  a  snow-storm  came, 
which  continued  through  the  night  and  most  of  the  next  day, 
breaking  up  the  meeting.  Brother  Wilson  is  well  received,  and 
will  no  doubt  be  well  supported.  He  is  laboring  faithfully  for  the 
salvation  of  souls,  and  is  anxious  to  have  a  revival.  May  he  not 
be  disappointed  in  his  most  sanguine  expectations! 

Lathrop  is  a  flourishing  little  town  on  the  line  of  the  Cameron 
and  Kansas  City  railroad.  The  Lathrop  Mission  is  in  charge 
of  Rev.  Joseph  Metcalf,  who  begins  the  labors  of  the  year  under 
encouraging  auspices.  There  are  only  eighty  members  on  the 
mission,  and  vet,  with  the  very  limited  assistance  from  the  Board 
of  Domestic  Missions,  he  will  be,  I  think,  financially  sustained. 
The  love-feast  and  sacramental  service  were  particularly  encour- 
aging. Up  to  the  time  I  left  one  had  joined  the  Church,  and  two 
persons  had  requested  the  prayers  of  God's  people. 

Bethanv  Mission  is  supplied  this  year  by  Rev.  J.  W.  Duskey. 
It  extends  northward,  up  into  the  State  of  Iowa.  The  quarterly 
meeting  for  this  mission  was  held  six  miles  north  of  Bethany.  It 
was  a  good  meeting.  Brother  Duskey  is  well  received,  and  is 
vigorous!  v  laboring  to  push  forward  all  the  interests,  temporal 
and  spiritual,  of  the  mission. 

The  Albany  Circuit  is  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  James 
A.  Hvder.  This  is  a  good  work.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  I  met 
noble-hearted  men  and  women  doing  battle  for  the  Lord.  The 
meeting,  which  was  held  at  Albany,  was  one  of  more  than  usual 
interest  and  power.  Two  joined  the  Church,  and  one  was  bap- 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  389 

tized.  I  learned  from  Brother  Hyder  that  the  prayer  and  class 
meetings  are  well  attended,  and  that  the  spiritual  condition  of  the 
circuit  is  good.  Peace  and  harmony  prevail  generally.  The 
meinbers  are  striving  for  higher  attainment  in  the  divine  life. 
From  Albany  I  went  to  Pattonsburg.  This  is  a  new  and  com- 
paratively small  field  of  labor,  but  one  which  will  yield,  if  prop- 
erly cultivated,  a  rich  and  abundant  harvest.  Rev.  R.  H.  G. 
Herann,  preacher  in  charge,  is  a  Virginian,  a  young  man,  and 
a  young  preacher.  His  parishioners  are  chiefly  from  the  same 
State.  Their  new  church,  "  Bethel,"  Avas  dedicated  on  the  Sab- 
bath.of  the  quarterly  meeting  by  Brother  Jesse  Bird.  I  remained 
here  five  days,  and  left  the  meeting  still  in  progress.  Up  to  mv 
leaving  three  had  united  with  the  Church  on  profession  of  faith, 
and  two  by  letter.  Six  or  eight  were  at  the  altar  forpravers  who 
have  since,  with  others,  been  converted. 

My  next  appointment  was  Gallatin  Station;  Rev.  C.  Babcock, 
pastor.  It  is  perhaps  proper  to  say  that  the  Church  and  people 
are  pleased  with  him,  and  he  with  them.  A.  gradual  revival  in- 
terest is  being  awakened.  Almost  every  Sabbath  one  or  more 
persons  join  the  Church.  •  There  were  four  additions  on  Sabbath 
night  of  the  quarterly  meeting,  and  several  penitents  came  for- 
ward for  the  prayers  of  the  Church.  I  left  the  meeting  in  prog- 
ress, with  pastor  and  people  hopeful  of  an  extensive  revival. 

The  quarterly  meeting  for  the  Plattsburg  Circuit,  held  at 
Mount  Moriah,  closed  my  round  of  twelve  weeks'  labor,  with 
great  satisfaction.  This  is  Rev.  D.  R.  Shackelford's  second  year 
on  this  circuit.  He  reports  ten  converts  and  twenty-two  acces- 
sions to  the  Church  since  Conference,  with  the  organization  of 
a  new  society.  The  financial  report  was  the  best  made  on  the 
round,  the  stewards  bringing  and  sending  up  an  overplus  of 
greenbacks.  I  left  the  meeting  in  progress,  with  encouraging 
prospects  for  a  revival.  Several  had  joined  the  Church,  and  it 
was  expected  that  others  would  follow  their  example. 

As  already  indicated,  we  get  a  condensed  and 
comprehensive  view  of  the  workmen  and  work  of 
the  Church,  in  the  reports  made  by  the  presiding 
elders  of  their  respective  districts.  .The  following 
report  of  the 


390  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

ST.  CHARLES  DISTRICT 
is  given  by  the  Rev.  A.  Monroe,  presiding  elder: 

St.  Charles  District  embraces  twelve  charges,  and  its  territo- 
rial lines  include  St.  Charles,  Lincoln,  Pike,  Montgomery,  and 
Warren  Counties  entire,  with  portions  of  Calloway  and  Audrain. 
I  entered  upon  my  work  conscious  of  my  responsibility  and  that 
my  help  must  come  from  God.  Thus  far  he  has  helped  me  and 
given  me  favor  with  preachers  and  people,  so  that  I  have  met 
with  a  cordial  welcome  and  hearty  co-operation  in  every  charge. 
My  worthy  predecessor  was  greatly  beloved,  and  it  was  not 
strange  that  some  disappointment  and  regret  should  have  been 
felt  on  account  of  his  being  changed  to  another  field  of  labor;  but 
our  people  in  St.  Charles  are  thorough  Methodists,  and  as  such 
they  love  the  itinerant  svstem — indeed,  the  entire  politv  of  the 
Church — and  readily  acquiesce  in  its  legitimate  operations;  so 
that  whoever  is  appointed  by  the  Conference  is  their  preacher, 
and  if  faithful  in  every  department  of  his  important  work  will 
be  loved  for  his  work's  sake — not  in  word  onlv,  but  in  deed  and 
in  truth. 

Joncsbiirff  Circuit. — I  commenced  my  round  on  the  Jonesburg 
Circuit  in  a  new  church  not  quite  finished,  at  a  place  called  Cot- 
tonwood.  The  appointment  was  so  soon  after  Conference  that 
the  attendance  was  small,  and  the  circumstances  being  against 
continuance  we  closed  Sunday  night.  The  Society  at  this  place 
will  have  a  neat  chapel,  well  adapted  to  the  wants  of  the  com- 
munity. It  speaks  well  for  the  zeal  and  liberality  of  the  commu- 
nity. Brother  Joseph  Allen,  preacher  in  charge,  is  most  cordiallv 
received,  and  with  his  consecration  to  God  and  his  work  we  feel 
encouraged  to  look  for  and  expect  a  prosperous  year. 

-AY-i'  Florence  Circuit. — Next  comes  New  Florence  Circuit 
quarterly  meeting,  at  Loutre  Island.  Here  also  we  had  a  slim 
attendance,  owing  to  intervening  circumstances.  On  Sabbath 
we  preached  the  funeral  of  that  good  and  useful  brother,  Thom- 
as Talbott,  who  never  was  absent  from  a  quarterly  meeting  un- 
less providentially  hindered.  At  the  funeral  the  large  house  of 
worship  was  well  filled.  The  colored  people  also  manifested 
their  respect  for  the  deceased  by  their  presence.  He  has  been 
taken  from  labor"  and  affliction  to  rest,  but  who  will  fill  his 
place?  ah,  who?  Brother  Smith,  the  preacher  in  charge,  is 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  391 

cordially  received,  and  the  omens  are  favorable  for  a  prosper- 
ous year. 

Montgomery  City  Circuit. — My  next  meeting  was  at  Martins- 
burg,  in  the  Montgomery  City  Circuit.  On  my  way  I  preached 
at  High  Hill,  Montgomery  City,  and  Wellsville.  The  congre- 
gations were  not  large,  owing  to  the  inclement  weather.  Two 
severe  snow-storms  this  week,  but  the  appointments  had  been 
previously  published.  The  meeting  at  Martinsburg  was  thinly 
attended,  owing  to  bad  weather,  but  I  trust  good  was  done. 
Brother  Craig  has  been  cordially  received  for  the  second  year 
on  this  work,  and  every  thing  is  in  favor  for  a  year  of  success 
and  prosperity. 

Portland  Circuit. — My  next  quarterly  meeting  was  on  this 
circuit,  at  Hani's  Prairie;  Brother  G.  Penn,  pastor.  This  meet- 
ing was  well  attended  by  the  official  members.  The  congrega- 
tions were  large  and  appreciative — an  old-fashioned  love-feast 
with  closed  doors — a  time  of  refreshing  with  the  Church;  a 
large  congregation  and  a  good  sacramental  occasion.  Brother 
Penn  is  more  than  ever  consecrated  and  very  kindly  received. 
Both  preacher  and  people  are  praying  and  laboring  for  a  suc- 
cessful year.  I  stopped  with  Brother  Penn  at  his  house  in  Ful- 
ton, -where  I  preached  to  a  good  congregation  according  to  a 
previous  appointment.  After  a  pleasant  night  with  Brother 
Penn  and  his  family  and  having  an  early  breakfast,  I  left  in  the 
stage,  and  on  Wednesday  met  my  wife  and  daughter  at  O'Fal- 
lon,  where  we  spent  a  day  and  night  very  pleasantly  with  my 
old  friend,  Dr.  Williams,  and  his  kind  family,  who  spared  no 
pains  to  make  our  visit  enjoyable.  Thursday  after  a  tedious 
delay  we  took  the  train  for  St.  Charles,  but  found  ourselves 
stopped  at  the  suburbs  of  the  city  by  obstructions  in  the 
road.  By  the  aid  of  a  friend  to  pilot  us  and,  after  walking 
about  a  mile,  we  reached  the  home  of  our  good  friend,  Dr. 
Overall,  somewhat  fatigued,  but  the  kind  reception  and  cordial 
Christian  greeting  of  the  doctor  and  family  soon  made  us  for- 
get the  trials  of  the  past.  I  suppose  if  we  traveled  by  tele- 
graph a  moment's  delay  would  make  us  impatient. 

St.  Charles  Station. — On  Christmas-day  we  commenced  our 
quarterly  meeting  exercises  in  St.  Charles.  The  congregations 
•were  good  both  in  quality  and  quantity.  The  presiding  elder 
preached  Saturday  morning  and  night,  also  Sabbath  morning, 


392  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

and  the  pastor  preached  at  night.  The  sacrament  on  the  Sab- 
bath and  the  love-feast  Monday  night  were  both  profitable  oc- 
casions. All  things  considered,  the  meeting  was  pretty  fair,  but 
the  bad  weather  and  the  holiday  amusements  interfered  very 
much  with  the  meeting.  I  learn  that  the  congregation  has 
largelv  increased  since  Dr.  Leftwich  has  taken  the  charge.  He 
is  laboring,  praying,  and  hoping  for  a  gracious  visitation  of 
spiritual  power.  He  has  the  co-operation  of  his  Church  and 
people,  and  we  may  reasonably  look  for  gracious  results. 

Paynesville  Circuit. — After  two  days'  rest  at  home,  I  left  on 
horseback  for  Paynesville,  a  distance  of  sixty  miles.  The  roads 
were  bad  and  the  weather  unpleasant,  but  no  time  for  parley. 
The  work  was  before  me,  and  I  must  go.  A  ride  of  twenty-six 
miles,  through  snow  and  rain,  brought  me  to  comfortable  quar- 
ters in  Middletown  ;  where,  after  a  little  rest  and  refreshment,  I 
preached  as  best  I  could  to  a  considerable  congregation.  Next 
morning  after  breakfast  I  left  upon  a  hard-frozen  and  rough 
road,  and  with  all  the  patience  I  was  master  of  rode  thirty 
miles  to  Brother  G.  Turner's,  five  miles  from  Paynesville.  Here, 
in  this  preacher's  home,  every  want  was  quickly  anticipated, 
and  man  and  beast  so  kindly  cared  for  that  the  toils  of  the  day 
were  soon  forgotten,  and  a  night's  rest  in  a  warm  room  and  a 
comfortable  bed,  with  God's  blessing,  prepared  me  for  the  du- 
ties of  the  quarterly  meeting.  Thank  God.  we  had  a  good 
time.  There  were  a  few  happv  conversions  and  six  additions 
to  the  Church.  I  was  glad  to  meet  many  old  friends,  and  espe- 
cially Sister  Forgey,  who,  after  a  tedious  and  protracted  illness 
and  great  suffering,  had  so  far  recovered  as  to  preside  at  her 
table  and  unite  with  the  congregation  in  public  worship.  I 
mention  this  fact  because  many  other  preachers  and  friends 
will  rejoice  to  know  that  she  is  still  spared  to  her  family  and  the 
Church.  Thursday  night  I  preached  at  Clarksville,  and  talked 
to  our  members  on  the  importance  of  sustaining  the  institutions 
of  the  Church. 

Louisiana  and  frariert'/le  Station. — Fridav  I  left  with  Brother 
King  for  Prairieville,  the  place  of  the  quarterly  meeting.  By 
going  several  miles  around,  we  visited  Father  and  Mother 
Tinsley,  living  with  Mr.  Smith,  their  son-in-law.  The  old  peo- 
ple are  worthy  members  of  our  Church,  but  now  too  infirm  to 
attend  meeting.  On  being  apprised  of  our  coming,  they  gath- 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  393 

ered  in  a  few  of  their  neighbors  that  I  might  preach  to  them, 
which  I  did,  and  we  had  a  refreshing  season  of  religious  wor- 
ship, very  much  to  the  comfort  of  these  dear  old  people.  They 
belong  to  Brother  King's  charge,  who  is  a  faithful  shepherd 
and  cares  for  all  his  flock,  old  and  young.  He  is  in  favor  with 
his  people,  and  is  laboring  with  zeal  to  save  souls  and  build  up 
the  Church.  Saturday  morning  we  rode  seven  miles  to  Prairie- 
vill'e,  and  commenced  the  work  of  the  quarterly  meeting  in 
company  with  the  pastor,  Brother  Tarwater,  who  is  for  the  first 
year  on  this  work,  more  of  a  stranger  than  the  elder;  so  we  took 
it  turn  about  in  preaching.  Our  meeting  was  continued  till 
Monday  night.  Congregations  large  and  serious,  and  the 
Church  much  revived.  Brother  Tarwater  is  cordially  loved, 
and  will  have  the  support  and  co-operation  of  the  membership. 

Auburn  Circuit. — Friday  night  I  attended  at  Oak  Grove,  the 
place  of  the  quarterly  meeting  for  this  circuit.  Here  Brother 
Jesse  Sutton  preached  to  the  gratification  of  an  attentive  con- 
gregation. On  Saturday  we  commenced  the  labors  of  the 
meeting.  The  preachers  of  the  circuit,  Brothers  Spencer  and 
Gillum,  with  several  local  preachers,  all  took  part  in  the  exer- 
cises of  the  meeting,  which  was  continued  until  Thursday 
night.  One  bright  conversion  and  the  Church  powerfully 
blessed.  This  is  a  large  and  important  circuit,  of  which  the 
preachers  seem  sensible,  and  are  prosecuting  their  work  with 
much  zeal  and  great  faithfulness.  God  will  no  doubt  own  and 
bless  their  earnest  labors. 

Ashley  Circuit. — I  rode  to  Ashley  on  Friday  to  hold  my 
quarterly  meeting  on  the  following  Saturday  and  Sunday. 
Here  our  Societv  is  small,  and  the  roads  bad,  and  the  attend- 
ance meager;  yet  a  few  faithful  ones  were  present  from  the  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  circuit,  and  our  meeting  was  not  without 
profit.  Sunday  morning  and  night  the  house  was  well  filled. 
Brother  Sutton  is  greatly  beloved  by  his  people.  He  cares  for 
them,  and  they  in  turn  care  for  him.  I  trust  that  much  good 
will  be  done  and  many  souls  saved. 

Cottleville  Circuit. — I  left  on  the  cars  Friday  for  Mount  Zion, 
on  the  Cottleville  charge.  We  commenced  our  meeting  on 
Saturday,  and  closed  Tuesday  night.  God  favored  us  with  a 
gracious  revival.  The  Church  was  greatly  blessed,  and  about 
sixteen  persons  converted,  with  an  addition  to  the  Church  of 


394  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

about  the  same  number.  A  majority  \\ere  students  of  Fairview 
Seminary.  Brother  Loving  is  greatly  encouraged  and  is  work- 
ing and  praying  for  a  general  revival,  while  he  is  sustained  and 
assisted  by  a  faithful  membership. 

Wright  City  Circuit. — The  quarterly  meeting  for  this  circuit 
was  at  Warrenton.  By  appointment  I  met  the  district  stew- 
ards at  Jonesburg,  and  preached  at  night.  Commenced  the 
quarterly  meeting  Friday  night  at  Warrenton,  and  staid  until 
Monday,  when  I  went  home,  leaving  the  meeting  in  charge  of 
their  pastor,  Brother  Van  Deventer,  who  has  found  an  open 
door  and  a  hearty  welcome  among  his  people.  He  is  working 
faithfully  in  his  Lord's  vineyard. 

Wentzville  Circuit. — My  next  meeting  was  at  Flint  Hill,  for 
the  Wentzville  Circuit.  I  found  Brother  Doggett  in  the  par- 
sonage and  in  tolerably  good  spirits,  with  a  determination  to  do 
all  in  his  power  for  the  circuit,  and  the  brethren  promise  their 
hearty  co-operation  and  support.  The  congregation  was  not 
large,  but  Sunday  morning  quite  fine  at  n  o'clock  and  better 
still  at  night,  when  we  felt  that  the  meeting  could  have  been 
continued  with  profit;  but  other  imperative  engagements  pre- 
vented, so  with  some  reluctance  we  closed  Sabbath  night.  One 
incident  is  noteworthy:  After  all  else  had  communed,  Capt. 
Harnett,  now  in  the  ninety-second  year  of  his  earthly  pilgrim- 
age, arose  from  his  chair  in  the  aisle,  and  for  the  first  time  in 
his  long  life  presented  himself  at  the  altar  to  receive  the  emblems 
of  Christ's  bodv  and  blood.  The  reader  can  easily  imagine  the 
great  sensation  produced  in  the  congregation. 

As  the  time  had  come,  I  took  the  cars  for  "  home,  sweet 
home,"  where  I  arrived  at  3  o'clock  P.M.,  and  found  all  well, 
and  a  gracious  revival  of  religion  in  progress  in  our  little  city 
of  Mexico,  under  the  leadership  of  Brother  Bourland,  whose 
earnest  efforts  in  the  pulpit  and  godly  visits  from  house  to 
house  have  been  owned  of  God  in  a  wonderful  manner..  Had 
he  relied  altogether  upon  his  pulpit  efforts,  I  verily  believe 
there  would  have  been  no  revival;  but  connect  the  pulpit  with 
fervent,  earnest,  believing  prayers,  and  the  power  will  come  and 
the  work  will  go  forward. 

AN  AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  OF  THE  LIFE  AND 

LABORS  OF  REV.  J.  H.  LEDBETTER. 
We  need  not  state  that  Brother  Ledbetter  is  an 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  395 

active,  efficient,  and  useful  minister  of  the  gospel 
and  member  of  the  Missouri  Conference.  His 
successful  ministerial  career  since  he  came  to  Mis- 
souri has  gained  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  all 
with  whom  he  has  been  associated,  and  the  fol- 
lowing autobiographical  sketch  of  his  ministerial 
life  will  be  read  with  interest  by  his  many  friends, 
clerical  and  lay: 

Joseph  Herndon  Ledbetter  was  born  in  the  old  town  of 
Cokesbury,  S.  C.  It  was  near  this  town,  in  the  old  "  Tabernacle  " 
Church,  that  Dr.  Olin,  "the  Great,"  first  taught  school  in  the 
South;  and  there  under  the  ministry  of  a  local  preacher,  James 
Glen,  he  was  converted. 

The  present  writer  came  of  Methodist  parentage.  My  father 
was  Rev.  W.  H.  Ledbetter,  at  one  time  a  member  of  the  South 
Carolina  Conference.  My  mother  was  Miss  B.  D.  Herndon,  of 
Cokesbury,  S.  C.  The  Ledbetter  family  came  from  England 
before  the  great  Revolution.  One  member  of  the  family  set- 
tled in  Virginia.  From  Virginia  they  have  scattered  through- 
out the  South  and  South-west.  In  Virginia,  about  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Revolution,  Henry  Ledbetter  was  born.  He  was 
my  grandfather.  This  Henry  Ledbetter  was  converted  under 
the  preaching  of  Bishop  Asbury,  and  was  one  of  Asbury's 
preachers  during  the  last  years  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
After  his  marriage  he  settled  on  a  large  plantation  in  North 
Carolina.  That  home  was  one  of  Asbury's  stopping-places  while 
on  that  part  of  his  vast  diocese. 

There  on  the  beautiful  Pee  Dee  he  reared  a  large  and  highly 
influential  family.  One  of  his  sons,  Henry  W.  Ledbetter,  was 
my  father,  and  was  born  in  June,  1800.  He  was  converted  in 
1812,  began  to  preach  in  1820,  and  was  a  member  of  the  South 
Carolina  Conference  about  seventeen  years.  He  married  in 
1837  and  located  the  same  year.  He  settled  near  Cokesbury,  S. 
C.,  and  became  a  planter.  Of  this  marriage  came  twelve  chil- 
dren, three  of  whom  are  Methodist  preachers.  I  was  the  sixth 
child,  and  had  a  well-defined  Christian  experience  at  the  age  of 
eight  years,  but  was  not  received  into  full  membership  until  I 


396  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

was  eleven.  About  that  time  my  father  removed  with  his  fam- 
ily to  Russell  County,  Ala.  There  he  became  a  cotton  plant- 
er. The  plantation  was  near  the  old  Methodist  town  of  Glen- 
ville,  where  the  State  had  located  a  military  institute.  There 
were  about  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  cadets,  ranging  from 
thirteen  to  twenty  years  of  age.  In  the  fall  of  1861  I  was 
registered  a  State  cadet,  one  of  the  youngest  of  the  corps. 
There  I  remained  until  1863,  when  the  school  was  broken  up  by 
the*  Civil  War.  I  entered  the  Confederate  Army  at  Dalton, 
Ga.,  in  1864,  and  was  with  the  army  at  Greensboro,  N.  C.,  when 
the  war  closed  in  1865.  Then  back  to  Alabama,  working  and 
going  to  college  through  those  dark  and  perilous  times  from 
1865  to  1868.  In  1868  I  did  mission  work  in  Montgomery,  Ala. 
In  1869  and  part  of  1870  I  taught  in  a  high  school  and  had 
charge  of  the  Church  at  Montevallo,  Shelby  County,  Ala.  It 
was  at  Montevallo  that  the  great  event  of  my  maturer  life  oc- 
curred. I  met,  loved,  sought,  won,  and  married  the  lovely  and 
accomplished  daughter  of  Rev.  W.  H.  Meredith,  D.D.,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Montevallo  Female  College,  in  which  Miss  Sue  was 
teaching  at  the  time  of  her  marriage. 

In  the  fall  of  1870  I  attended  the  first  session  of  the  North 
Alabama  Conference  as  one  of  its  under-graduates.  Bishop 
McTyeire  was  there,  hunting  recruits  for  the  West.  At  his  re- 
quest I  came  to  Missouri.  I  was  appointed  to  Louisiana  Sta- 
tion, Missouri  Conference.  When  I  reached  St.  Louis,  Decem- 
ber 14,  1870,  I  learned  that  Rev.  A.  Monroe,  presiding  elder  of 
the  St.  Charles  District,  had  already  supplied  the  place.  At 
the  request  of  Rev.  J.  W.  Lewis,  presiding  elder  of  the  St.  Louis 
District,  I  took  charge  of  the  Labadie  Circuit  for  the  rest  of  the 
year. 

In  September,  1871,  I  reported  to  the  Missouri  Conference, 
then  in  session  at  Palmyra,  Mo.,  and  was  entered  among  the 
under-graduates  of  the  Missouri  Conference. 

At  the  close  of  the  Palmyra  Conference  Bishop  Doggett 
announced  me  stationed  at  Fayette.  I  was  the  first  regularly 
appointed  stationed  preacher  at  Fayette.  The  membership  was 
at  that  time  very  small,  but  full  of  zeal  and  pluck.  No  one  ever 
had  a  more  pleasant  Board  of  Stewards  to  deal  with.  Adam 
Hendrix,  Thomas  Swinney,  Dr.  J.  J.  Watts,  William  Nipper, 
James  I  licks,  J.  J.  Watts,  Jr.,  and  others.  The  old  church  under 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  307 

the  hill,  dedicated  by  Bishop  Pierce  before  the  war,  had  been 
sold  to  the  negroes,  and  our  people  were  using  the  chapel  of 
Central  College  Library  Hall.  No  young  man  ever  had  better 
friends  than  Dr.  Wills,  F.  X.  Foster,  W.  G.  Miller,  and  O.  H. 
P.  Corprew,  the  teachers  in  Central  College. 

During  the  year  there  was  a  very  gracious  revival  of  religion  in 
the  Church.  Brother  E.  R.  Hendrix  (now  bishop),  then  stationed 
at  Macon  City,  helped  me  for  a  week.  Between  fifty  and  sixty 
were  added  to  the  Church.  There  are  two  or  three  incidents 
connected  with  the  year's  work  which  may  be  worth  recording. 
One  night  during  the  meeting  E.  R.  Hendrix  preached  a  ser- 
mon of  great  clearness  and  force  on  the  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  in  conversion.  There  was  in  the  congregation  a  young 
lady  of  much  intelligence  and  of  fine  culture,  a  member  of  the 
Campbellite  Church.  This  young  lady  came  under  deep  con- 
viction, and  went  to  her  room  to  think  and  to  pray.  The  next 
morning  about  10  o'clock,  while  she  was  in  her  room  praving 
she  was  happily  converted.  On  the  following  Monday  night 
she  was  received  into  the  Methodist  Church. 

The  other  incident  illustrates  how  a  small  thing  may  become 
the  pivot  on  which  turn*  the  destiny  of  a  soul.  One  Sunday 
morning  in  February,  1872,  I  was  in  the  pulpit,  and  just  as  I 
was  about  to  commence  the  service  two  ladies  entered  the 
chapel — one  a  married  lady  and  member  of  the  Church,  the 
other  a  girl  of  eighteen  summers  and  a  stranger  to  us.  They 
walked  up  the  aisle  to  the  second  pew  in  front  of  the  pulpit. 
The  young  lady  fixed  her  eyes  on  the  face  of  the  preacher  and 
did  not  remove  them  during  the  services.  On  the  following 
day  I  was  called  to  the  house  where  the  young  lady  was  visit- 
ing. I  was  introduced  to  Miss  B.,  the  young  stranger  of  my 
congregation.  I  found  her  in  deep  distress  on  account  of  her 
sins,  being  under  deep  conviction.  After  reading  the  Bible  to 
her,  instructing  her,  and  praying  with  her,  I  departed.  The 
next  day  when  I  met  her  she  was  as  happy  as  she  could  be, 
having  been  gloriously  converted.  She  was  baptized  and  re- 
ceived into  the  Church  the  next  Sabbath.  Here  is  her  story : 
"  I  was  born  of  Campbellite  parents  and  raised  in  that  faith. 
Have  been  attending  Church  since  early  childhood,  but  never 
heard  an  entire  sermon  until  last  Sunday;  because  I  never  list- 
ened, but  passed  the  time  in  gazing  around^  whispering,  and 


398  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

giggling.  But  on  last  Sabbath  I  went  to  the  Methodist  Church 
with  Mrs.  P.,  and  she  took  me  up  to  the  front,  and  when  Mr. 
Ledbetter  arose  to  open  the  service  I  looked  at  him.  He  so 
closely  resembled  my  brother  who  was  killed  in  the  war  that 
I  looked  at  him  all  the  time  and  listened  to  the  sermon,  and  was 
convinced  of  my  need  of  the  Saviour." 

During  the  summer  of  1872  I  became  a  beggar  to  raise  fifteen 
hundred  dollars  for  a  parsonage  at  Fayette,  which  has  sheltered 
every  station  preacher  since  its  completion.  When  I  started  to 
Mexico  in  September  to  attend  the  Missouri  Conference  the 
parsonage  was  not  quite  finished.  But  that  did  not  make  any 
difference  with  me,  so  far  as  my  personal  convenience  was  con- 
cerned, for  I  had  my  order  from  Bishop  Pierce  to  go  to  Wright 
City.  Without  abusing  the  appointing  power,  or  asking  for  a 
transfer,  or  crying,  or  any  thing  of  the  kind,  I  went,  and  it  was 
ten  years  before  I  had  the  pleasure  of  living  in  that  nice  parson- 
age. 

The  Mexico  Conference  was  an  interesting  one  to  me,  for  I 
was  there  ordained  an  elder  by  Bishop  Pierce,  the  pulpit  orator, 
and  one  of  the  truest  Methodist  preachers  that  ever  lived.  At 
the  close  of  the  Conference  Bishop  Pierce  read  me  out  for  Wright 
City,  and  W.  E.  Dockery,  presiding  elder.  This  was  a  great  sur- 
prise to  me — was  a  long,  hard  move,  and  my  family  not  in  a 
condition  to  be  moved.  However,  we  went  cheerfully  and  had 
a  good  year.  It  was  the  first  real  circuit  I  ever  had.  It  was 
thirty  miles  wide  and  had  nine  preaching-places.  The  four 
principal  appointments  were  Wright  City,  Warrenton,  Troy,  and 
Marthasville.  There  were  some  good  meetings,  quite  a  number 
added  to  the  Church.  Some  of  the  converts  of  that  year  are 
now  leaders  in  their  Churches.  Had  fine  congregations  and 
good  times. 

At  one  of  the  school-houses  where  I  preached  on  Sunday  aft- 
ernoon I  closed  the  year  without  seeing  any  special  fruits  of 
my  labor,  but  some  years  after  found  that  one  soul  had  been 
saved.  I  will  give  the  incident.  The  convert  was  a  woman. 
She  lived  some  distance  from  the  school-house,  which  was  the 
nearest  preaching-place  to  her.  One  Sunday  afternoon  she 
came  to  preaching,  riding  on  horseback  and  carrving  a  child  in 
her  lap.  Under  the  sermon  that  day  (1873)  she  experienced 
the  saving  grace  of  God.  Thank  God,  that  year's  preaching  at 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  399 

the  old  school-house  was  not  in  vain.  I  hope  to  meet  her  in 
heaven. 

That  year  was  full  of  experiences — some  amusing,  some  sad. 
I  would  not  be  able  to  tell  them  in  a  short  article  like  this.  Jan- 
uary, 1873,  was  very  cold — at  one  time  twenty-two  degrees  be- 
low zero.  I  attempted  to  go  from  Troy  to  Wright  City.  I  rode 
about  four  miles,  and  found  I  could  not  stand  it.  Hence  I 
turned  into  a  narrow  lane  and  started  for  the  hospitable  farm- 
house of  one  of  our  members.  The  lane  was  rough,  full  of  gul- 
lies— some  deep  cuts  that  had  been  bridged.  Thg  snow  was 
badly  drifted,  and  I  could  not  always  find  the  bridge — sometimes 
found  myself  in  a  gully  full  of  snow.  The  horse  and  the  driver 
would  wallow  around  awhile  and  then  scramble  out  as  best  we 
could.  By  the  time  I  reached  the  house  I  was  stiff  with  cold. 
The  brother  had  to  lift  me  from  my  saddle.  But  a  hearty  wel- 
come, a  big  fire,  and  an  old  Missouri  supper  made  it  all  right 
and  put  me  in  good  shape  to  continue  my  trip  next  day,  reach- 
ing Wright  City  without  any  difficulty. 

At  Troy  the  cholera  prevailed  in  the  summer  of  1873.  It  was 
a  fearful  scourge — many  persons  died.  All  the  resident  pastors 
left.  When  the  time  came  for  my  monthly  appointment  at  Troy 
some  of  my  friends  advised  me  not  to  go.  But  I  felt  that  it  was 
my  duty  to  go;  so  I  said  good-by  to  my  wife  and  two  little 
ones.  Reached  Troy  on  Saturday.  The  town  looked  lonely 
and  deserted.  I  preached  twice  on  Sunday.  While  preaching 
I  saw  two  processions  go  bv  on  their  way  to  the  cemeterv.  The 
last  camp-meeting  ever  held  at  the  Monroe  Camp-ground  was 
held  at  the  close  of  this  year. 

This  year,  September,  1873,  the  Missouri  Conference  met  at 
Carrollton,  Bishop  Wightman  presiding.  This  Conference  gave 
me  another  surprise.  I  was  appointed  to  the  Jonesburg  Cir- 
cuit. But  the  move  was  short  and  the  circuit  was  not  large. 
Only  three  appointments,  and  they  not  far  apart.  Our  Church 
at  Jonesburg  Avas  at  that  time  in  good  condition  for  work. 
There  was  a  nice  parsonage,  and  this  was  our  first  house-keep- 
ing. 

As  I  walked  up  the  principal  street  on  my  way  to  the  parson- 
age an  old  citizen,  a  member  of  another  Church,  saw  me,  and 
noticing  my  youthful  appearance  he  became  alarmed  for  the 
Church.  With  great  solicitude  he  asked  one  of  the  members 


400  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

this  significant  question:  "What  are  you  folks  going  to  do  with 
that  boy?"  Our  member  replied:  "Well,  we  had  a  man  last 
year,  and  could  not  get  along  with  him,  so  we  thought  we  would 
try  a  boy."  We  had  a  pleasant  year.  One  grand  revival 
at  Jonesburg — some  of  the  Jones  family  converted,  and  Aunt 
Julia  Deering  did  some  of  her  best  shouting. 

In  September,  1874,  the  Missouri  Conference  was  held  at  St- 
Joseph,  Bishop  Keener  presiding.  Here  the  great  fight  over 
the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate  began.  I  was  returned  to  the 
same  work,  the  Jonesburg  Circuit.  The  people  gave  us  a  hearty 
•welcome,  and  we  had  another  good  year.  I  had  two  voung  men 
in  my  circuit,  members  of  the  High  Hill  Church,  who  assisted 
me  in  public  services  this  year,  as  they  were  looking  to  the 
ministry — one  of  them  Rev.  Jacob  Snarr,  now  an  honored 
member  of  the  Missouri  Conference.  Dr.  Pittman,  one  of  the 
prominent  citizens  of  Jonesburg,  united  with  our  Church  this 
year. 

Rev.W.  W.  Jones  was  presiding  elder  of  the  St.  Charles  Dis- 
trict, and  under  his  judicious  management  we  had  at  Flint  Hill, 
in  St.  Charles  County,  some  glorious  camp-meetings.  Hun- 
dreds were  converted  at  these  meetings.  The  camp-meeting  of 
August,  1874,  was  the  most  remarkable  meeting  of  the  kind 
I  ever  attended.  Many  persons  came  forward  for  prayer — in 
some  instances  whole  families,  all  of  whom  were  converted. 
Some  young  men  had,  by  mutual  consent,  organized  into  a  band 
to  pray,  to  meet  on  a  hill  adjacent  to  the  camp-ground  just  be- 
fore sunset — especially  to  pray  for  the  descent  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.  As  well  as  I  remember  there  were  in  the  band  the  fol- 
lowing persons,  who  were  then  boys  in  the  ministry:  M.  M. 
Hawkins,  Henry  Kay,  J.  M.  O'Brien,  Rufus  Gamble,  William 
M.  Gillum,  and  J.  H.  Ledbetter,  and  also  quite  a  number  of 
young  laymen.  Day  after  day  the  band  of  these  young  men 
met  on  that  hill  beneath  the  grand  old  shade-trees  overlooking 
the  encampment,  and  prayed  for  the  revelation  of  divine  power. 
The  meeting  was  going  on  successfully,  with  some  conversions, 
but  still  the  fullness  of  the  Spirit  had  not  come.  But  on  the 
fourth  afternoon  the  power  did  come  upon  that  band  as  none  of 
them  had  ever  experienced  before.  We  had  been  together 
about  one  hour  when  the  first  bell  rang  for  evening  preaching, 
so  we  adjourned.  The  young  men  started  down  the  hill  to  join 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  401 

the  great  congregation.  M.  M.  Hawkins  and  myself  remained 
standing  by  the  old  log  which  was  used  as  pew  and  pulpit.  I 
said  to  Hawkins:  "I  don't  feel  satisfied  to  leave  yet.  I  feel  per- 
suaded there  is  a  blessing  for  me  that  I  have  not  yet  received." 
Hawkins  replied:  "That  is  just  my  view  of  my  own  case."  I 
said:  "Then  let  us  kneel  down  here  and  have  one  more  prayer." 
We  dropped  on  our  knees.  "You  lead  the  prayer,  Hawkins," 
said  I.  "No,  no;"  said  Hawkins,  "  I  can't  pray.  You  pray, 
Brother  Ledbetter."  Then  I  began  to  pray,  but  I  never  got  be- 
yond the  first  agonizing  cry  of  my  heart,  "  O  God!"  for  the 
Holy  Ghost  came  upon  us  with  such  power  and  glory  as  we  had 
never  felt  before.  We  were  carried  beyond  ourselves  and  cried 
aloud,  and  our  hallelujahs  reached  the  ears  of  the  others,  who 
returned,  and  as  they  came  to  that  consecrated  old  log  they  re- 
ceived a  similar  baptism  of  power.  What  a  scene!  About 
twenty  young  men,  all  under  the  power  of  the  Spirit  and  prais- 
ing God  aloud!  The  second  bell  rang  and  we  marched  down 
that  hill  in  a  file  of  couples,  and  into  the  altar  place  of  that  taber- 
nacle, singing  the  old  hymn,  "Am  I  a  soldier  of  the  cross?  "  The 
vast  congregation  seemed  electrified  and  joined  in  the  song  with 
enthusiastic  joy.  The  only  person  who  seemed  not  to  be  enthused 
was  the  preacher.  He  gave  the  congregation  one  of  the  most 
inappropriate  and  juiceless  sermons  you  ever  heard.  All  the 
time  he  was  belaboring  his  congregation  with  his  jargon  about 
market-places,  there  sat  those  young  men  so  full  of  joy  that 
they  could  not  hold  in.  The  scene  was  one  never  to  be  for- 
gotten. The  preacher,  with  his  little,  old,  dry  sermon  and  those 
young  men  praising  God  every  few  minutes  during  the  entire 
sermon,  for  the  wonderful  blessing  of  God  they  had  just  re- 
ceived; while  the  vast  congregation  had  utterly  forgotten  the 
preacher,  and  their  attention  turned  altogether  to  those  joyful 
and  happy  young  men.  The  scene  beggars  description — some- 
times serious,  sometimes  comic,  wonderfully  sublime,  yet  su- 
premely ludicrous.  Just  two  illustrations  will  show:  The 
preacher  was  describing  the  scene  in  a  city  market-place.  An 
old  pauper  woman  had  stolen  a  beefsteak.  A  policeman  arrested 
her.  This  the  preacher  acted  out,  striding  across  the  platform 
and  clutching  an  imaginary  victim  as  he  related  the  circum- 
stances. Just  then  one  of  the  young  men  shouted  aloud,  fol- 
lowed by  a  chorus  of  amens,  "Glory  be  to  God!"  That  was 
26 


402  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

too  much  for  the  gravity  of  that  serious  and  well-behaved  con- 
gregation. They  could  not  keep  back  the  laugh  in  spite  of 
them.  The  only  person  undisturbed  was  the  preacher.  On  he 
went,  without  spiritual  point  or  design.  After  some  time  he 
reached  Chicago  in  his  discourse  on  markets.  He  told  us  how 
they  buy  wheat  in  the  "exchange."  Just  as  he  was  going  over 
the  bids  and  sold  his  wheat  at  one  dollar  and  thirty-five  cents 
per  bushel,  one  of  the  young  men  who  had  been  for  some 
time  on  the  point  of  explosion,  cried  out,  thinking  no  doubt  of 
the  blessing  of  salvation:  "Glory  be  to  God!  We  got  it  cheap- 
er than  that  on  the  hill."  This  touched  off  the  congregation 
again,  but  the  preacher,  undismayed,  kept  on  his  way  to  the  end. 
He  would  have  preached  the  funeral  of  that  camp-meeting  if 
God  had  not  forestalled  him  by  pouring  out  his  Spirit  on  those 
young  men.  After  the  sermon  they  went  out  into  the  congrega- 
tion and  took  it  for  Christ.  Every  person  who  came  up  that  night 
was  converted,  and  every  conversion  was  clear  and  bright. 

At  the  Conference  of  1875,  which  met  at  Glasgow,  I  was 
read  out  for  the  Clarksville  Circuit.  This  was  then  one  of  the 
most  pleasant  fields  of  labor  in  the  bounds  of  the  Missouri  Con- 
ference. Three  of  the  most  delightful  years  of  my  life  were 
spent  at  Clarksville.  Yet  my  first  great  sorrow  came  then  in 
the  death  of  my  father  in  1876,  and  of  my  little  boy,  Harry,  in 
March,  1878. 

In  1876  we  held  a  series  of  meetings  which  continued  till  the 
last  of  March,  resulting  in  about  one  hundred  conversions. 
These  meetings  were  held  by  the  pastor  and  his  people — no 
foreign  help.  The  first  meeting  was  held  at  Clarksville.  L.  R. 
Downing,  W.  L.  Terry,  Guile,  Smith,  Jamison,  and  Ballanger 
were  my  right-hand  supporters.  Some  of  the  members  told  me  it 
was  useless  to  try  to  hold  a  meeting  without  sending  off  for  a  dis- 
tinguished preacher  or  evangelist,  as  the  other  Churches  always 
did.  I  thought  that  the  pastor,  his  people,  and  God  would  be 
enough.  Our  next  meeting  was  at  Paynesville.  The  principal 
workers  there  were  Judge  Forgey,  J.  E.  Forgey,  Rev.  T.  Pryor, 
and  W.  H.  Henderson.  We  owe  every  thing  there  to  Judge 
Andrew  Forgey.  He  was  a  grand  man,  a  thorough-going- 
Methodist  from  Kentucky.  His  house  was  always  the  welcome 
home  of  the  Methodist  preachers.  But  he  has  long  since  en- 
tered upon  his  rich  reward  in  the  paradise  of  God. 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  403 

REV.  GEORGE  J.  WARREN 

has  furnished  us  with  a  brief  sketch  of  his  ministe- 
rial life,  the  perusal  of  which  will  not  fail  to  enter- 
tain his  numerous  friends  in  Missouri: 

I  was  born  at  SaHsburj,  Wiltshire,  England,  February  16, 
1847.  The  names  of  my  parents  are  William  and  Maria  War- 
ren. I  moved  with  my  parents  to  the  United  States  in  1849, 
and  settled  in  Ray  County,  Mo.;  moved  from  place  to  place  with 
my  father,  who  was  an  itinerant  Methodist  preacher,  until  1856, 
when  the  family  were  finally  located  in  Bloomington,  Macon 
County,  Mo. 

I  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  until  1857,  when  I  en- 
tered Macon  High  School  at  Bloomington,  under  the  instruction 
of  Rev.  O.  R.  Boughton,  and  later,  Rev.  J.  P.  Nolan.  I  joined 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  at  Bloomington,  in  1860;  was  "born 
again  "  near  New  Hope  Church,  in  Ray  County,  at  a  grove 
meeting  conducted  by  Revs.  A.  S.  Alexander,  W.  E.  Dockery, 
and  M.  Rainwater,  in  August,  1867;  was  licensed  to  preach  at 
the  same  place,  W.  E.  Dockery  being  presiding  elder. 

I  taught  school  during  the  winter  of  1867  and  the  summer 
of  1868;  was  recommended  to  the  Annual  Conference  for  ad- 
mission on  trial  by  the  Quarterly  Conference  of  the  Millville 
Circuit,  in  August,  1868;  was  received  on  trial  by  the  Missouri 
Conference,  at  its  session  at  Weston,  Platte  County,  Mo.,  in  Sep- 
tember, 1868;  Bishop  H.  H.  Kavanaugh,  President,  and  J.  D. 
Vincil,  Secretary. 

I  was  appointed  to  Oskaloosa  Circuit,  Kansas,  Savannah  Dis- 
trict; was  sent  the  following  year  to  Irvin  and  Junction  City 
Mission,  with  Rev.  E.  J.  Stanley,  now  of  the  Montana  Confer- 
ence; was  appointed  the  following  year  to  Shawnee  Circuit, 
and  remained  there  two  years.  Here  occurred  the  second  most 
important  event  of  my  life.  I  was  married  to  Miss  S.  E.  Mc- 
Cuiston,  of  Ray  County,  Mo.,  and  began  a  new  life,  growing 
better  and  happier  to  this  blessed  hour. 

My  next  appointment  was  to  Nebraska  City  Station,  Neb.,  re- 
maining there  two  years.  In  1874  I  was  sent  to  Holton,  Kan.; 
in  1875,  to  Wyandotte  Circuit,  Kan.;  in  1876,10  Atchison  Station, 
Kan.  In  1877  I  was  transferred  to  the  Missouri  Conference  by 


404  Methodism  ui  Missouri.  1869-70. 

Bishop  Marvin,  and  sent  to  Norborne  Circuit;  in  1889  was  sta- 
tioned at  Brunswick  (four  years);  in  1883  was  sent  to  Carrollton 
Station;  in  1884,10  Gallatin  District  (four  years);  in  1888,  to  Ful- 
ton Station. 

This  completes  the  outline  of  my  ministerial  life  and  appoint- 
ments to  date.  Nine  years  of  my  ministry  were  spent  in  the 
Western  Conference.  If  there  is  aught  heroic  in  my  life,  it  be- 
longs to  those  nine  years  in  Kansas.  God  only  knows  what  I 
endured  mentally  and  physically  during  that  time,  the  effects  of 
which  are  now  upon  me  and  making  me  an  old  man  prema- 
turely. 

I  was  ordained  deacon  in  August,  1870,  by  Bishop  Marvin; 
and  elder  in  1871,  by  Bishop  Pierce,  at  Nebraska  City. 

My*  work  in  Missouri  has  alwavs  been  pleasant,  and  God  has 
honored  my  ministry  in  the  conversion  and  addition  to  the 
Church  of  nearly  eight  hundred  persons,  leaving  out  four  years' 
work  on  the  district  as  presiding  elder.  I  built  the  new  church 
at  Brunswick,  which  cost  $7,000. 

At  Richmond,  in  September,  iSSo,  I  was  elected  Treasurer  of 
the  Conference  Board  of  Missions.  I  have  seen  the  contribu- 
tion for  Missions  more  than  double  itself  within  the  last  decade. 
During  the  thirteen  years  since  my  return  to  the  Missouri  Con- 
ference no  special  or  notable  events  have  transpired  that  would 
be  worthy  of  historic  record. 

A  SKETCH  OF  THE  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  REV. 
JOHN  THATCHER. 

Rev.  John  Thatcher  was  born  in  the  State  of  Connecticut 
March  17,  1806.  While  he  was  quite  young  his  father  moved 
to  Pennsylvania,  where  he  grew  to  manhood. 

His  father  was  a  farmer,  and  he  worked  on  the  farm  until  he 
was  twenty -one  years  of  age.  His  early  educational  advantages 
were  of  the  most  meager  character— only  such  as  were  afforded 
in  that  early  day  in  a  country  school.  His  thirst  for  knowledge 
was  intense  from  boyhood,  and  during  the  years  of  toil  on  the 
farm  he  seized  every  spare  moment  he  could  get  to  improve  his 
mind.  After  he  was  of  age  he  attended  one  term  of  the  Acad- 
emy at  Syracuse,  N.  Y.  This  completed  his  education  so  far 
as  the  school  and  college  were  concerned. 

After  this  he  spent  several  years  in  teaching,  in  the  meantime 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  405 

pursuing  his  studies  with  all  the  ardor  of  his  nature,  endeavor- 
ing to  satisfy  his  undying  thirst  for  knowledge. 

During  these  earlier  years  of  his  life,  though  deprived  of  the 
.advantages  of  a  collegiate  education,  he  formed  those  habits  of  sys- 
tematic study  which  he  carried  with  him  through  life,  and  which 
made  him  one  of  the  most  thorough  Biblical  scholars  of  the 
West.  He  was  not  content  with  reading  the  Bible  simply  in  its 
English  translation;  he  mastered  the  Greek  and  Hebrew,  and 
the  text  in  the  original  was  almost  as  familiar  to  him  as  the 
King  James  translation.  Not  content  with  the  acquisition  of  the 
•original  tongue  of  the  Bible,  as  a  very  large  part  of  the  history 
and  literature  of  the  Church  and  a  great  portion  of  its  theology 
were  written  in  the  Latin  language,  he  mastered  it,  that  he 
might  be  able  to  go  to  the  original  documents  themselves  when- 
ever he  desired  to  consult  them.  But  not  content  with  these  ac- 
quisitions, as  very  much  of  the  highest  grade  of  the  theological 
literature  of  our  day  comes  to  us  from  Germany,  he  studied 
German,  so  that  he  could  read  and  speak  the  German  language 
almost  as  readily  as  any  one.  His  constant  custom  for  many 
years  was  to  daily  read  the  Holy  Scriptures  in  all  of  these  lan- 
guages. 

In  regard  to  scholarship,  his  motto  was  thoroughness.  He 
was  not  brilliant,  but  solid.  He  was  emphatically  a  hard  student. 
He  reduced  every  thing  to  system,  and  studied  how  to  economize 
time.  Throughout  his  entire  life  he  was  an  earlv  riser — gener- 
ally at  4,  and  never  later  than  5  o'clock.  While  others  were 
asleep  he  was  poring  over  his  books,  and  acquiring  that  ripe 
and  thorough  scholarship  which  many  of  his  brethren,  much 
more  brilliant  than  he,  and  who  had  far  greater  advantages, 
never  attained,  because  they  were  unwilling  to  pay  the  price 
which  wisdom  demands.  Notwithstanding  his  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  the  original  tongues  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  he  was  so 
modest  and  unobtrusive  that  his  most  intimate  friends  were  un- 
aware of  his  extraordinary  attainments  unless  something  special 
would  call  him  out.  I  remember  that  over  thirty  years  ago  Rev. 
J  C.  Kimber,  who  was  at  that  time  presiding  elder  of  Springfield 
District,  Illinois,  told  me  an  incident  showing  his  profound 
knowledge  of  Hebrew,  which  astonished  him  and  the  Faculty  of 
McKendree  College. 

Mr.  Thatcher  was  on  an  examining  committee  at  Commence- 


406  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

ment,  and  a  question  was  raised  in  the  Hebrew  language.  The 
members  of  the  Faculty  took  one  side  of  the  question  and  Mr. 
Thatcher  the  other.  Mr.  Kimber  said  he  expected  to  see  Mr. 
Thatcher  speedily  silenced,  but,  to  his  utter  astonishment,  he 
silenced  the  Faculty  and  convinced  them  that  they  were  wrong 
and  he  was  right. 

In  regard  to  education,  Mr.  Thatcher  is  an  illustration  of 
what  may  be  accomplished,  under  the  greatest  difficulties,  by 
systematic  and  persistent  application.  He  was  in  love  with 
knowledge,  and  the  years  of  his  servitude,  to  obtain  the  object 
of  the  idol  of  his  heart,  were  like  the  years  of  Jacob's  servitude 
for  the  lovely  and  beautiful  Rachel— "they  were  sweet,  and 
seemed  but  a  few  days." 

He  studied  on  horseback  while  traveling  large  frontier  cir- 
cuits, or  by  the  light  of  the  fire,  or  of  the  old  greasy  lamp,  or  of 
the  old  tallow  candle  in  the  cabins  of  his  parishioners  in  the  wil- 
derness; but  his  proficiency  was  greater  than  many  who  had 
all  the  advantages  of  the  university.  What  a  ftimiilus  to  voung 
men  entering  the  ministry,  who  have  not  had  the  advantage  of 
the  college  and  theological  seminary,  is  the  example  of  such 
men  as  Mr.  Thatcher!  And  what  a  reproof  it  is  to  those  who 
have  had  all  the  advantages  and  have  failed  to  improve  them ! 

His  labors  as  an  itinerant  preacher  in  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church  began  in  1834,  when  he  was  twenty-eight  years  of 
age.  Leaving  Pennsylvania  at  the  call  of  Rev.  A.  Monroe  and 
Rev.  Jesse  Green,  he  started  westward,  but  halted  one  year  in 
Ohio,  and  traveled  a  circuit  under  the  presiding  elder.  The 
next  year,  1835,  he  came  to  Missouri  and  entered  the  Missouri 
Conference.  He  traveled  the  following  circuits  in  succession: 
Union,  in  Franklin  County ;  Keytesville,  Macon,  Monticello, 
Bowling  Green,  Danville,  Paris,  Boonville,  and  Arrow  Rock. 
In  1845  he  was  appointed  presiding  elder  of  Lynn  District.  At 
all  of  these  appointments  he  was  successful  in  building  up  the 
Church  and  having  revivals,  some  very  extensive  ones. 

On  September  25,  1839,  in  Pike  County,  Mo.,  he  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Virginia  B.  Wells,  who  still  survives  him.  In 
1845  he  joined  the  Illinois  Conference,  in  which  he  traveled 
until  1869.  He  died  in  Movmt  Erie,  in  Wayne  County,  leaving 
such  a  record  as  none  but  a  good  man  can.* 

*G.  W.  Hughes,  MS. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

MISSOURI  CONFERENCE. 

Rev.  Abraham  Millice,  the  Oddity,  Known  to  This  Present 
Writer  as  the  Most  Eccentric  Person  He  Ever  Saw — Hu- 
morous Incidents  When  Holding  Meetings  with  Him — An 
Account  of  His  Ministerial  Life,  by  J.  B.  Landreth — Millice 
Forced  His  Landlord  to  Let  Him  Have  Prayer  with  Him 
and  His  Family — His  Cave  Church — His  Overshot  Mill,  etc. 
— M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  Callaway  County,  Mo.,  by  Rev. 
George  W.  Penn — Fulton  Station — Pleasant  Grove  Church 
— Prairie  Chapel — Miller's  Creek  Church — Prospect  Church 
— Shiloh  Church —  Mount  Pleasant  Church — Williamsburg 
Church — Reedsville  Church. 

WE  have  in  our  possession  a  manuscript  con- 
taining a  biographical  sketch  of  Rev.  Abra- 
ham Millice,  from  the  pen  of  J.  B.  Landreth,  full 
of  spicy  incidents  and  entertaining  narratives. 
Those  of  you  who  were  acquainted  with  the 
peculiarities  and  eccentricities  of  Rev.  Millice  will 
not  be  surprised  when  you  find  that  a  sketch  of  his 
life  contains  things  curious  and  funny  and  risible. 
We  had  the  pleasure  of  a  personal  acquaintance 
with  him.  When  we  were  stationed  at  Jefferson 
City  many  years  ago  he  was  on  the  Jefferson  City 
Circuit.  Being  very  singular  and  peculiar,  there 
were  some  young  persons  at  one  of  his  appoint- 
ments who  were  in  the  habit  of  laughing  and  mak- 
ing fun  of  him.  So,  on  one  occasion,  he  was  un- 
usually animated  and  pathetic,  and  brought  his 
whole  congregation,  these  young  people  with  the 

(407) 


408  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

rest,  to  tears  and  weeping.  When  they  became 
overwhelmed  with  feeling  he  stopped  suddenly  and 
said  to  those  young  persons:  "  Now  laugh  if  you 
can." 

I  assisted  him  in  one  of  his  protracted  meetings. 
Some  of  the  friends  said  to  me,  "There  are  two 
things  operating  against  the  success  of  the  meeting: 
Brother  Millice  preaches  too  long  and  tells  too 
many  anecdotes;"  requesting  me  to  inform  him. 
So  I  performed  this  delicate  duty  as  delicately  as 
I  could.  He  simply  said,  "  I  will  try  to  do  better ;" 
and  requested  me  when  he  had  preached  long 
enough,  to  jerk  the  skirt  of  his  coat,  which  I  did 
faithfully,  and  he  would  immediately  take  his  seat. 
I  was  compelled  to  return  to  Jefferson  City,  and 
when  the  hour  for  preaching  arrived,  they  say,  he 
went  into  the  pulpit,  and  the  first  thing  which  he 
did  was  to  hold  up  the  skirt  of  his  coat  before  the 
congregation,  and  said,  "Brother  Lewis  is  not 
here  to  pull  my  coat-tail  to-day,  and  I  will  preach 
as  long  as  I  please,"  which  was  from  n  o'clock 
A.M.  to  1:30  P.M.  As  it  was  a  little  town,  quite 
a  number  went  home  to  dinner  and  returned  while 
he  was  still  preaching.  It  also  troubled  him  not  to 
tell  his  usual  number  of  anecdotes.  When  he  an- 
nounced his  text  he  would  sometimes  introduce 
the  subject  .with  an  anecdote,  and  whenever  he  got 
into  the  brush  he  would  get  out  by  telling  an  anec- 
dote. But  he  tried  to  preach  without  anecdotes, 
only  to  find  out  that  he  could  not  preach  at  all ; 
then  he  turned  around  and  looked  at  me  and  said: 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  409 

"  If  you  don't  let  Millice  preach,  he  can't  preach  at 
all."  Of  course  the  anecdotes  came  thick  and 
fast.  Here,  however,  we  remark  that  notwithstand- 
ing his  great  eccentricities,  he  was  a  good,  sound, 
orthodox  preacher,  and  quite  a  revivalist.  We 
now  direct  the  attention  of  the  reader  to  what  his 
biographer  says  about  him : 

In  1846  I  became  acquainted  with  Rev.  Abraham  Millice. 
He  was  a  Southern  Methodist  preacher,  born  and  raised  in  Ger- 
many, could  not  speak  English  until  he  was  twenty  years  of 
age,  was  one  of  the  most  peculiar  men  I  ever  saw.  He  once 
traveled  and  preached  in  Ozark  County.  I  was  told  that  he 
stopped  with  a  man  near  the  mouth  of  Upper  Spring  Creek  to 
stay  all  night.  When  it  was  time  to  retire  the  landlord  told  him 
where  he  was  to  sleep.  "  Pesure,"  said  Millice,  "  can't  we 
have  prayer  before  we  go  to  bed  ?  "  "  No,"  replied  the  landlord, 
•"  I  don't  have  such  d — d  foolishness  about  me."  "  Veil,"  said 
Millice,  we  will  have  it  here  to-night."  "  Well,"  replied  the  man, 
"  this  is  my  house,  and  I  expect  to  control  it."  Millice  said :  "  I 
will  pray  with  you  and  your  family  even  if  I  have  to  whip  you. 
I'll  show  you  what  a  Dutchman  can  do.  You  are  a  pretty  fellow 
raising  a  family  without  prayer.  Kneel  down  and  pray  or  I'll 
thrash  you."  So  he  made  the  landlord  and  family  kneel  down 
•with  him  while  he  prayed.  Next  morning,  after  a  similar  alter- 
cation, he  prayed  with  the  family  and  then  went  on  his  way  re- 
joicing. 

That  year  he  held  a  protracted  meeting  in  a  large  cave  on 
Bryant's  Fork,  and  that  cave  was  for  many  years  called  Millice's 
Cave.  During  the  meeting  there  were  five  or  six  brothers,  by  the 
name  of  Koontz,  who  were  very  wild,  wicked,  dissipated  fellows, 
and  who  gave  Brother  Millice  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  One 
day  his  patience  gave  way,  and  he  told  them  that  they  were  too 
mean  to  live  and  that  God  would  kill  them  in  less  than  twelve 
months,  and  I  was  told  by  a  reliable  person  that  some  disease 
got  among  them,  and  they  all  died  except  one  in  less  than  a 
year.  From  that  circumstance  he  was  regarded  by  many  in 
that  region  as  a  prophet. 


410  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

He  held  a  meeting  at  Mount  Store,  in  the  corner  of  Texas 
County.  On  Sunday  a  Campbellite  preacher  was  present,  and 
Brother  Millice  called  on  him  to  conclude  the  services.  But 
he  broke  out  with  a  tirade  of  abuse  of  Millice's  interpretation 
of  the  Scriptures,  and  among  other  things  said:  "The  Script- 
ures need  no  interpretation ;  they  mean  what  they  say  and  say 
what  they  mean,  and  must  be  taken  literally."  When  he  took 
his  seat  Brother  Millice  then  arose  and  s^id  to  the  preacher: 
"Brother,  do  you  claim  to  be  a  good  man?"  He  replied: 
"Yes."  Millice  then  said,  "The  Scriptures  say  that  out  of  the 
good  man's  belly  shall  flow  rivers  of  living  water.  So  if  the 
brother  is  right,  if  you  will  put  him  on  one  of  these  high  hills 
you  may  have  a  good  overshot  mill,"  announced  his  next  ap- 
pointment, and  pronounced  the  benediction. 

When  preaching  Brother  Millice  loved  to  tell  his  experi- 
ence, and  while  Rev.  J.  Dines  was  stationed  in  Springfield  he 
preached  for  him,  and  during  his  sermon  he  came  to  a  pause 
and  said:  "What!  me  tell  mine  experience  here  in  Springfield 
among  all  these  Campbellites?  Yes,  if  the  Campbellites  were 
as  thick  as  the  dog  fennel  around  this  house,  and  the  devil  was 
standing  at  the  door,  I  would  tell  it."  Notwithstanding  his 
oddities,  he  was  regarded  as  a  good  and  useful  man  and  a  safe 
expounder  of  the  Scriptures. 

OUR  CHURCH  IN  CALLAWAY  COUNTY,  Mo. 

The  information  contained  in  the  following 
sketch  concerning  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in 
Callaway  County  has  been  kindly  furnished  by 
Rev.  George  W.  Penn,  whose  long  acquaintance 
in  that  section  enables  him  to  give  a  correct  repre- 
sentation of  our  Church  organizations  in  said 
county  from  the  year  1860.  He  proceeds  as  fol- 
lows : 

Fulton  Station  was  occupied  by  Rev.  W.  A.  Mayhcw  as  pas- 
tor in  1860,  and  was  in  a  prosperous  condition,  the  congregation 
having  just  completed  the  present  building  at  a  cost  of  eight 
thousand  dollars.  This  vear  the  auditorium  was  finished,  while. 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  411 

the  basement  was  left  unfinished.  The  church  was  dedicated 
by  Rev.  W.  G.  Caples,  the  entire  amount  of  cost  having  been 
secured  by  subscription.  But  now  comes  the  dark  days  of  the 
war,  and  the  subscription,  which  was  then  considered  good,  was- 
rendered  worthless.  Hence  the  trustees  failed  to  secure  the 
amount  subscribed.  The  congregation  was  greatly  reduced  in 
numbers.  In  1861  H.  A.  Bourland  was  sent  to  this  charge.  Be- 
ing a  single  man  and  full  of  zeal  for  the  cause  of  God,  he  un- 
dertood  to  raise  the  amount  necessary  to  relieve  the  Church  of 
debt,  which  amounted  at  that  time  to  four  thousand  dollars. 
He  continued  his  work  in  1862,  but  the  war  being  in  full  blast 
he  was  compelled  to  stop.  lie  succeeded,  however,  in  reducing 
the  debt  about  one  thousand  dollars.  Thus  matters  remained 
until  the  war  was  over.  The  station  was  placed  upon  the  cir- 
cuit, and  only  one  Sabbath  was  given  to  Fulton  by  the  preacher 
in  charge  of  the  circuit.  Revs.  Charles  Babcock  and  F.  A. 
Savage  served  the  Fulton  Circuit  the  following  years  of  1863-64. 
In  the  fall  of  1866  George  W.  Penn  was  appointed  to  the  Ful- 
ton Circuit,  which  then  embraced  the  following  appointments: 
Fulton,  Miller's  Creek,  Prairie  Chapel,  Pleasant  Grove,  and 
Ham's  Prairie.  The  trustees  of  our  Church  at  Fulton  had  ar- 
ranged to  let  the  house  go  for  the  debt,  but  the  pastor  persuaded 
them  to  let  him  try  his  hand  as  Bourland  had  done — the  debt 
now  amounting  to  about  thirty-five  hundred  dollars.  He  com- 
menced his  work  and,  by  perseverance,  at  the  end  of  the  sec- 
ond year  the  trustees  announced  the  Church  free  from  all  finan- 
cial embarrassment.  From  this  time  (1868)  Fulton  Church  has- 
gone  forward.  She  has  been  much  favored  in  earnest  and 
faithful  pastors — Chapman,  Allen,  Blakey,  Groves,  Beagle, 
Whitten,  and  others  have  led  her  membership  in  successful 
battle  against  the  powers  of  darkness.  Among  the  laymen 
composing  the  Church  in  1860  were  the  names  of  Dr.  Veach, 
J.  H.  Jamerson,  N.  C.  Coons,  Sydney  Royster,  Joseph  Fisher, 
Martin  Key,  and  others,  all  of  whom  have  passed  to  their  re- 
ward except  Coons  and  Jamerson.  In  all  these  past  years 
there  were  some  Christian  women,  excellent  sisters,  who  aided 
much  in  the  work  of  the  Church.  Fannie  \Vorthington  was 
an  excellent  member,  in  whom  the  preachers  found  a  good  and 
faithful  counselor.  Mother  Watkins  was  another  one  of  these 
faithful  helpers  in  the  work  of  the  Church;  also  Mrs.  Veach 


412  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

and   others.     They  assisted  in  many  ways,  and  were  faithful 
Marthas  and  Marys  to  whom  the  world  is  greatly  indebted. 

Pleasant  Grove  Church. — This  charge  is  located  in  the  north- 
ern part  of  Callaway  County.  In  1860  the  congregation  wor- 
shiped in  a  small  frame  building  which  was  occupied  once  a 
month  by  the  pastor.  The  Church  was  composed  of  some  of 
the  best  families  in  Callaway  County.  The  Pattersons,  Mc- 
Clintocks,  Edmondsons,  Brites,  Sipples,  Hanna,  Tinchers, 
Fishes,  and  others.  In  1862  H.  A.  Bourland  held  a  series  of 
meetings  at  the  church,  which  resulted  in  a  large  increase  of 
membership.  At  this  meeting  Rev.  W.  A.  Hanna,  a  prominent 
member  of  the  Missouri  Conference,  was  conyerted.  This 
Church  has  furnished  four  excellent  men  for  the  Methodist 
ministry:  James  O.  Edmondson,  B.  D.  Sipple,  W.  A.  Hanna, 
and  William  Fish.  The  first  three  are  in  the  traveling  connec- 
tion and  the  last  one  is  local.  This  Church  •was  favored  with 
the  labors  of  three  local  preachers,  X.  L.  Fish,  W.  Sipple,  and 
George  Hatcher,  who  did  much  to  build  up  and  develop  the 
membership — three  men  who  were  always  ready  to  help  the 
pastor,  and  to  stand  firmly  by  the  Church  in  the  day  of  her 
sore  trials.  Many  of  the  pastors  who  served  the  Church  dur- 
ing these  years  will  bear  their  testimony  that  these  men  loved 
the  Church  and  demonstrated  their  love  by  their  ivorks. 

In  1869-70  the  old  house  was  removed,  and  in  its  place  a  new 
building  was  erected.  It  is  an  excellent  house,  a  large  and  com- 
modious edifice,  and  stands  there  to-day  a  memorial  of  the  enter- 
prise and  liberality  of  that  community.  This  building  was  sol- 
emnly dedicated  to  the  worship  of  Almighty  God  by  Rev.  D.  R. 
McAnally,  editor  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 

Many  of  the  members  who  worshiped  in  this  church  in  1860 
have  passed  over  the  river,  and  are  now  safely  housed  in  heav- 
en. The  historian  will  please  allow  us  to  record  their  names 
here:  A.  McClintock,  William  Sipple,  W.  Brite,  Mrs.  Winfield 
Edmondson,  William  Sharpe,  and  others  that  might  be  men- 
tioned. 

Pleasant  Grove  has  an  appropriate  name,  for  it  was  and  still 
is  a  delightful  place.  Of  the  ministers  who  have  served  this 
Church  as  pastor  we  may  speak  of  the  following:  A.  P.  Linn, 
C.  Babcock,  F.  A.  Savage,  W.  W.  Jones,  William  Warren,  R.  G. 
Loving,  J.  R.  Taylor,  S.  L.  Woody,  P.  D.  Vandeventer,  and  J. 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  413 

Y.  Blakey,  all  of  whom  were  faithful  in  the  proclamation  of 
God's  word,  and  grand  results  are  being  manifested  as  the  years 
roll  on,  and  will  continue  until  time  shall  be  no  more.  Some  of 
them  have  been  called  from  the  field  of  labor  to  rest,  and  are 
now  reaping  the  rich  harvest  of  their  faithful  sowing. 

Prairie  Chapel  is  a  church-house  located  about  eight  miles 
north-west  of  the  city  of  Fulton.  This  house  of  worship  was 
erected  about  the  year  1854,  under  the  direction  of  Rev.  D.  C. 
Black  well,  the  pastor.  It  was  dedicated  to  the  service  of  God  by 
Rev.  N.  S.  Berryman.  It  was  a  frame  building,  and  was  almost 
always  filled  with  devoted  worshipers  at  the  regular  appoint- 
ments. Many  revivals  have  been  in  this  church,  and  many  will 
rejoice  in  eternity  that  they  found  the  Saviour  precious  to  their 
hearts  in  Prairie  Chapel.  The  families  composing  this  Church, 
were  the  Givenses,  Selbys,  McClanahans,  Halls,  and  Loyds. 
William  Givens  and  his  son  David  and  James  K.  Selby  were 
killed  by  the  Missouri  militia  at  their  homes,  as  were  many 
other  good  men  in  Missouri  during  those  dark  days  of  the  Civil 
War.  Their  loss  to  this  Church  was  keenly  feit,  but  there  came 
into  this  community  a  year  or  two  later,  as  refugees  from  the 
South-west,  B.  Barrow  and  Wiley  Vinson,  with  their  families> 
who,  being  men  of  deep  piety,  aided  much  in  rallying  the  scat- 
tered forces  of  the  Church  at  this  point;  but  they  have  com- 
pleted their  work,  and  their  bodies  sleep  in  the  consecrated 
grounds  of  Prairie  Chapel. 

It  was  this  Church  that  gave  to  Missouri  Methodism  Rev. 
William  Sarter.  He  first  appeared  in  this  community  as  a  poor 
German  boy,  under  the  employ  of  Brother  William  Givens,  and 
under  the  ministry  of  Rev.  A.  P.  Linn  he  was  converted,  and  in 
a  few  years  afterward  entered  the  ministry.  He  became  an 
earnest  preacher,  and  gave  promise  of  great  usefulness;  but,  be- 
ing led  astray  by  extreme  views  on  the  subject  of  holiness,  he 
left  the  Methodist  ministry,  and  finally  left  the  Church. 

Prairie  Chapel  did  much  in  planting  and  establishing  the 
doctrines  of  Methodism  in  that  region.  William  Selby  was  a 
man  of  no  ordinary  ability.  His  father  was  a  local  minister  in 
the  Methodist  Church.  This  circumstance  led  his  son  to  inves- 
tigate and  defend,  with  much  ability,  the  peculiar  doctrines  and 
usages  of  Methodism.  B.  Barrow  was  a  man  well  informed  on 
all  subjects,  and  especially  on  the  doctrines  and  usages  of  our 


414  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

Church.  Rev.  F.  A.  Savage  spent  several  vears  of  his  life  in 
this  community,  and  often  occupied  the  pulpit  as  a  local  preach- 
er. He  was  a  man  of  talents,  and  those  who  heard  him  preach 
can  testify  that  his  work  was  well  done. 

The  old  church-house  having  served  its  time,  they  have  gone 
to  work  recently,  and  have  built  a  structure,  neat  and  tastv, 
large  and  commodious,  and  it  reflects  no  little  credit  upon  the 
citizens  of  that  neighborhood.  It  was  dedicated  in  the  fall  of 
1889  by  Rev.  George  J.  Warren,  of  Fulton.  Thus  we  have  at 
this  point  a  strong  Church,  whose  future  promises  much  in  the 
great  and  important  work  of  saving  souls. 

Miller's  Creek  Church. — This  was  in  1860  a  log  house,  situated 
near  a  stream  of  the  same  name.  It  was  in  this  house  that  such 
men  as  Redman,  Monroe,  Smith,  Fenton,  Hatton,  Spencer,  Jor- 
dan, Blackwell,  and  others  used  to  preach.  Many  happy  meet- 
ings have  been  held  here,  and  many  souls  born  into  the  king- 
dom of  heaven.  Here  the  writer  first  saw  A.  P.  Linn,  who  was 
conducting  a  meeting  at  this  church.  At  this  meeting  we  saw 
for  the  first  time  J.  Fisher,  William  Givens,  and  S.  Miller,  the 
Rev.  W.  G.  Miller,  William  and  Josiah  Selby.  How  these  breth- 
ren sung  and  praved,  and  how  thev  worked  with  the  penitents 
at  the  altar!  They  were  field  hands  indeed.  They  did  whatever 
was  necessary  to  be  done.  While  the  ministers  did  the  preach- 
ing, the}-  did  the  singing  and  the  praying,  and  there  were  great 
manifestations  of  divine  power  in  the  salvation  of  sinners. 
Where  do  you  find  such  worshipers  nowadays? 

Miller's  Creek  Church  was  situated  about  ten  miles  west  of 
Fulton,  on  the  western  border  of  Callawav  Countv.  The  prin- 
cipal families  of  this  Church  were  the  Selbys,  Ellises,  Millers, 
Sampsons,  Bedworths,  and  McClures.  In  1860  this  Church  num- 
bered about  forty  members,  and  was  one  of  the  principal  points 
•on  the  Fulton  Circuit.  The  dark  days  of  the  war  made  a  sad 
impression  upon  this  Church.  The  house  of  God  was  neglect- 
ed, and  the  membership  was  greatly  depleted.  Regular  service 
could  not  be  maintained.  But  in  1865  peace  was  restored,  and 
the  membership  was  rallied.  The  Church  moved  forward  suc- 
cessfully, and  was  blessed  with  gracious  revivals,  so  that  in 
about  two  years  she  numbered  over  one  hundred  members. 

In  1872-73  the  congregation  built  a  new  house  of  worship  at 
a  cost  of  about  two  thousand  dollars,  Rev.  S.  L.  Woody  serving 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  415 

them  as  pastor.  This  new  house  was  dedicated  by  Rev.  John  D. 
Vincil,  who  was  then  stationed  at  Columbia,  Mo.  The  building 
is  large,  and  seats  about  four  hundred  persons.  In  the  grave- 
jard  near  by  sleep  those  who  have  crossed  the  river,  and  are 
waiting  on  the  other  shore.  We  must  not  fail  to  mention  Mrs. 
Polly  Miller,  the  mother  of  Rev.  W.  G.  Miller.  Her  life  was 
full  of  good  works — a  warm  friend  of  the  preacher,  and  a  wise, 
counselor  to  those  who  needed  it.  She  took  pleasure  in  hospi- 
tality; was  a  woman  of  superior  ability;  very  gifted  in  praver; 
often  at  the  altar  laboring  with  penitents,  and  pointing  them  to 
the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  Her 
maiden  name  was  Hatton,  the  aunt  of  Robert  Hatton  of  precious 
memory,  who  died  a  member  of  the  Missouri  Conference  in  1861 
or  1862. 

Here  in  this  neighborhood  Wesley  G.  Miller  was  born  and 
reared  by  his  excellent  mother,  who  now  sleeps  so  quietlv  in  the 
grave-yard  here.  Yes,  from  her  he  received  those  lessons  of  in- 
struction and  wisdom  that  have  placed  him  in  the  front  ranks 
of  Israel's  hosts  doing  mighty  battle  for  Israel's  God.  Eternity 
alone  can  reveal  what  this  excellent  lady  has  accomplished. 

Prospect  Church. — This  house  of  worship  was  situated  about 
three  and  a  half  miles  due  west  of  the  town  of  New  Bloomfield, 
and  was  originally  a  log  building.  In  1860  the  congregation 
constituting  the  Prospect  Church  met  in  this  house.  John 
Hall,  G.  Emmons,  Mrs.  Longley,  and  their  families  composed 
largely  the  membership.  Here  the  old  style  of  Methodism 
could  be  easily  recognized — class-meeting  and  prayer-meeting 
on  every  Sabbath,  with  a  general  rally  when  the  preacher  came 
round  to  fill  his  appointment.  The  church  was  often  filled  to 
its  utmost  capacity.  Many  souls  have  been  happy  in  this  old 
church.  Many  have  heard  the  word  preached  from  that  rude 
pulpit  by  such  men  as  E.  B.  Marvin,  Redman,  Monroe,  and 
other  such  like  able  ministers.  It  was  here  E.  M.  Marvin 
preached  a  very  remarkable  sermon  on  the  language  of  the 
jailer.  It  was  at  this  point  a  debate  was  held  between  B.  H. 
Spencer  and  Noah  Flood,  of  the  Baptist  Church. 

In  1868-69  tne  congregation  vacated  the  old  log  house  and 
built  about  half  a  mile  east  of  it  a  new,  large,  and  pleasant  house 
of  modern  stvle  of  architecture.  Here  they  have  grown  into  a 
membership  of  about  fifty,  who  are  doing  good  and  substantial 


41 6  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

work  in  our  Master's  vineyard.  This  Church  furnishes  a  min- 
ister, Rev.  A.  E.  Emmons,  of  the  South-west  Missouri  Confer- 
ence. 

Shilok  Church  was  situated  on  the  Missouri  river  bottom  op- 
posite Jefferson  City.  In  1860  it  was  a  small  frame  house,  and 
was  the  only  church  in  that  community.  The  people  came 
quite  a  distance  from  above  and  below  this  point  to  meeting. 
The  house  was  always  filled,  for  in  those  days  almost  everybody 
went  to  church.  Here  we  find  the  Taltons,  Moores,  Smiths, 
Furgusons,  Younts,  Carltons,  and  many  others  composing  the 
membership  of  this  Church.  In  1860  George  Fenton  was  the 
pastor,  and  he  continued  another  year,  and  the  influence  of  his 
work  still  remains. 

In  1870  a  new  church  was  planted,  and  a  different  location  was 
sought  and  obtained  at  Cedar  City,  a  small  town  about  half  a 
mile  above  the  church,  and  the  name  was  changed  from  Shiloh 
to  Cedar  City.  The  old  house  and  the  grounds  upon  which  it 
was  located  were  returned  to  their  former  owner  according  to 
the  provisions  of  the  deed.  Many  precious  souls  have  been 
saved  through  the  instrumentality  of  this  Church.  The  new 
church-building  was  planned  by  Rev.  J.  P.  Nolan,  the  presiding 
elder  of  that  district,  at  a  cost  of  twenty-five  hundred  dollars. 
It  is  a  good  house  of  worship,  and  stands  there  as  a  monument 
of  the  liberality  of  the  people  of  that  community. 

Abigail  Yount  was  one  of  the  oldest  members,  and  a  true 
and  devout  woman  she  was.  Her  house  was  the  preacher's 
welcome  home.  Here  he  found  food  and  shelter  for  himself  and 
horse,  and  he  could  remain  as  long  as  he  pleased,  spending  days 
of  rest  from  his  weary  toil. 

Mount  Pleasant  was  situated  about  ten  miles  below  Shiloh, 
near  the  Missouri  River.  In  1860  the  membership  here  was 
small.  The  church  was  a  log  structure,  and  after  the  war  fell 
into  disuse.  But  in  the  earlier  days  of  Methodism  in  Callaway 
County  it  was  a  strong  Church.  They  owned  fortv  acres,  upon 
which  was  a  camp-ground,  and  here  at  their  annual  gatherings 
very  many  souls  have  tasted  of  the  good  word  of  God.  It  was 
at  this  camp-ground,  in  1860,  that  this  writer  heard  a  verv  able 
sermon  delivered  by  Rev.  Horace  Brown,  of  the  Missouri  Con- 
ference, on  the  text:  "All  are  yours;  and  ye  are  Christ's;  and 
Christ  is  God's."  It  is  near  this  place  that  Rev.  George  Fenton 


1869-70.  Missouri  Conference.  417 

and  his  wife  sleep  side  by  side  in  a  grave-yard,  awaiting  the  res- 
urrection morn. 

Two  small  Churches  were  formed  out  of  the  Mount  Pleasant 
Church — namely,  Rocky  Branch  and  Barkersville.  At  these 
'  points  the  people  gladly  heard  the  proclamation  of  the  gospel 
which  saluted  the  ears  of  sinners  with  the  joyous  tidings  of  sal- 
vation. No  place  is  too  obscure  to  preach  the  word  of  God. 
"  Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creat- 
ure "  is  the  divine  commission  under  which  the  Methodist 
preacher  proclaims  salvation  to  lost  sinners. 

.  A  new  church  has  just  been  erected  (May,  1890)  half  a  mile 
from  the  old  site  of  Mount  Pleasant,  and  has  been  dedicated  by 
Dr.  Hammond,  of  Central  College,  Fayette,  Mo. 

Williamsburg  Church  is  one  of  the  oldest  Churches  in  Calla- 
way  County.  When  first  organized  it  was  a  Church  of  note 
and  wealth.  The  house  of  worship  was  a  frame  building  lo- 
cated in  the  town  of  Williamsburg.  The  Church  was  composed 
of  good  families,  such  as  the  Hobsons,  Kidwells,  Andersons, 
Dysons,  Paytons,  and  others.  Capt.  Anderson  was  a  noted 
Methodist.  He  was  a  man  of  wealth  and  great  religious  zeal, 
and  was  a  recognized  leader  in  the  community.  But  these  ex- 
cellent families  have  almost  entirely  disappeared  from  the 
neighborhood,  and  a  different  class  of  people  have  taken  their 
places.  The  Church  still  exists,  and  they  worship  in  the  same 
frame  building  in  Williamsburg.  They  have  not,  however,  had 
any  prosperity  since  the  war,  and  have  been  gradually  declin- 
ing. It  requires  quite  a  struggle  to  maintain  regular  service. 

Williamsburg  Church  is  situated  in  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
sections  in  Callaway  County,  and  possesses  peculiar  material 
advantages,  and  should  be  a  live  and  influential  Church.  Nine 
Mile  Prairie,  of  which  Williamsburg  is  the  center,  is  the  garden 
spot  of  Callaway  County.  Since  the  war  the  emigration  has 
been  from  the  Northern  States.  They  have  their  prejudices 
against  the  M.  E.  Church,  South;  and  while  many  who  have 
come  into  this  community  are  Methodists,  under  the  influence 
of  the  prejudice  they  bring  with  them  from  the  East  they  unite 
with  the  Presbyterians. 

Bethel  Church  is  situated  about  one-fourth  of  a  mile  from  the 
town  of  Reedsville,  in  Callaway  County,  Mo.  This  Church  was 
organized  in  an  early  day,  and  was  originally  called  Union. 

27 


41 8  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

The  congregation  worshiped  at  first  in  a  log  house,  which  was 
located  about  one  mile  east  of  Reedsville.  The  principal  fami- 
lies composing  the  Church  in  1860  were  the  Offetts,  Garnetts, 
Scotts,  and  Gills — families  who  came  from  Virginia  in  an  early 
day.  They  possessed  more  than  ordinary  culture  and  enter- 
prise. At  Old  Union,  as  it  was  often  called,  many  precious 
souls  were  converted.  Many  great  and  grand  sermons  were 
preached  there,  and  the  doctrines  of  Methodism  were  firmly 
planted. 

In  1870-71  the  congregation  sold  the  old  house  to  the  colored 
people,  and  erected  a  new  church  about  one  mile  west  and  near- 
er to  Reedsville.  It  is  a  good,  substantial  building,  with  a  capac- 
ity to  accommodate  a  good-sized  congregation.  The  people  of 
Reedsville  Circuit  have  erected  one  of  the  best  parsonages  in 
the  Mexico  Circuit. 

It  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  this  church  that  Dr.  Bond 
came  to  his  untimely  death  by  the  accidental  discharge  of  a 
gun.  This  accident  occurred  in  1844  or  1845.  He  was  presid- 
ing elder  of  the  district,  and  was  at  the  time  of  his  death  one 
of  the  leading  ministers  of  the  Church  in  Missouri. 

Bluford  Hutts  belonged  to  this  Church.  He  was  a  plain,  un- 
assuming farmer— a  man  of  excellent  character.  William  B. 
Garnett  was  very  much  devoted  to  the  Church,  and  did  much 
good.  Brother  Offett  is  the  father  of  Prof.  Eli  Offett,  of  St. 
Louis,  and  is  a  man  of  great  enterprise  and  earnest  piety.  We 
now  (1890)  have  in  this  community  a  large  and  wealthy  mem- 
bership. This  church  is  the  center  of  a  large  and  most  excel- 
lent circuit,  known  as  the  Reedsville  Circuit. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 
ST.  Louis  CONFERENCE. 

The  Minute  Business  and  Statistical  Reports — Bishop  Marvin's 
Travels  in  South-west  Missouri — Pleasant  Hill  —  Church 
Dedication — Harrisonville — Nevada  City — Red  Oak  Camp- 
ground— Granby  District  Conference — Reason  for  no  More 
Missions  on  the  District — The  Editor  of  the  Advocate  Doc- 
tored— Reorganization  in  the  South-west — The  Strength  of 
the  Church  in  That  Part  of  the  State— Report  of  Lexington 
District,  by  Rev.  J.  R.  Bennett — Warrensburg  Circuit,  Rev. 
\V.  J.  Brown,  Pastor — Warrensburg  Station,  Rev.  C.  C. 
Woods  in  Charge — Warsaw  Circuit,  Rev.  R.  C.  Meek,  Pas- 
tor— Clinton  Circuit,  Rev.  J.  B.  Wooldridge,  Pastor — Dover 
Circuit,  Rev.  N.  M.  Talbott  in  Charge — Saline  Circuit,  Rev. 
W.  S.  Woodard,  Pastor — Waverly  Station,  W.  F.  Mister, 
Pastor — Lexington  Station,  Rev.  W.  F.  Camp,  Pastor — St. 
Louis  District,  Rev.  Joseph  Boyle,  Presiding  Elder — First 
Church,  Dr.  Clinton,  Pastor — Centenary,  Rev.  C.  D.  N. 
Campbell,  Pastor — St.  John's,  F.  A.  Morris,  Pastor — Kirk- 
wood,  Rev.  Robinson,  Pastor — The  Autobiography  of  Rev. 
W.  S.  Woodward — Rev.  J.  C.  Berryman  Gives  an  Account 
of  the  Charleston  District— Fort  Scott— Sedalia— Travels  of 
Rev.  L.  M.  Lewis  through  South-east  Missouri. 

THE  St.  Louis  Conference  was  held  in  the  city 
of    St.   Louis    September   1-8,    1869;   Bishop 
Pierce,  President;  W.  M.  Prottsman,  Secretary. 

The  following  preachers  were  admitted  on  trial : 
J.  H.  St.  Clair,  W.  M.  Shelton,  J.  R.  Eddleman, 
R.  J.  Derrick,  J.  C.  Alexander,  W.  C.  Montgom- 
ery, J.  A.  Russell,  G.  W.  Hull,  S.  Richmond, 
C.  D.  Davis,  T.  D.  Payne,  and  A.  J.  Hartle.  Re- 
mained on  trial:  G.  H.  Williamson,  R.  D.  Poole, 

(419) 


420  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

T.  P.  Hill,W.  E.  Woodward,  D.  P.  Meacham,  C. 
C.  Wright,  and  W.  M.  Bewley.  Admitted  into 
full  connection:  E.  G.  Frazier,  C.  C.  Woods,  and 
W.  F.  Graves.  Re-admitted:  W.  T.  Ellington. 
Traveling  preachers  ordained  deacons:  E.  G. 
Frazier  and  D.  P.  Meacham.  Ordained  elders: 
G.  H.  Williams  and  S.  A.  Blakey. 

Increase  of  membership,  1,841 ;  Sunday-schools, 
181;  teachers,  567;  scholars,  9,698.  Contributed 
for  Domestic  Missions,  $3*758.65;  for  Foreign 
Missions,  $196.65.  Baptized  infants,  760;  adults, 
1,208. 

After  an  harmonious  session,  while  transacting 
the  business  of  the  Church,  the  preachers  received 
their 'appointments  gladly,  and  went  away  rejoicing 
in  the  privileges  of  preaching  the  everlasting  gos- 
pel of  the  grace  of  God  to  a  sinful  and  lost  world. 

The  reader  will  find  given  below  an  interesting 
description  of  Bishop  Marvin's  travels  in  South- 
west Missouri.  The  name  of  Marvin  is  enough  to 
secure  the  reading  of  the  piece  without  one  word 
of  commendation  from  any  one.  He  was  a  man 
who  never  spoke  without  saying  something  of  more 
than  ordinary  interest.  Hence  he  drew  crowds  to 
hear  him  when  he  preached,  and  now  that  his 
voice  is  silent  in  death,  his  writings,  his  books  are 
eagerly  sought  and  read  with  avidity,  because  they 
contain  his  original,  fresh,  vigorous  thoughts — 
thoughts  that  used  to  sway  his  audience  as  they 
came  forth  in  utterances  of  clear,  forcible,  and  fit- 
ting language.  A  man  great  in  goodness  and  good 


»  1869-70.  Si.  Louis  Conference.  421 

in  greatness,  who  photographed  his  image  upon 
the  age  in  which  he  lived,  and  which  shall  never 
be  obliterated  by  the  revolving  cycles  of  time.  He 
writes  thus: 

Pleasant  Hill  furnishes  one  of  many  instances  of  towns 
•which  have  suffered  by  the  cupidity  of  railroad  corporations. 
When  the  road  is  being  located  some  man  offers  twenty  or 
forty  acres  of  land  to  have  the  depot  established  on  his  place, 
a  mile  from  town.  This  being  done,  business  forsakes  the  old 
town,  property  depreciates,  and  the  company  makes  what  the 
people  lose.  This  has  happened  so  uniformly  in  Missouri  that 
it  may  be  set  down  as  a  rule. 

As  in  many  other  cases,  so  at  Pleasant  Hill.  The  old  town 
has  the  advantage  for  beauty  of  situation.  It  is  on  a  command- 
ing prairie  eminence,  while  the  depot  town  is  on  low  land. 
Then  a  sort  of  straggling  neck,  in  this  as  in  other  cases,  con- 
nects the  new  and  old  towns,  making  of  the  whole  an  awk- 
wardly arranged  community.  When  a  road  is  made  where 
there  is  a  town  of  two  or  three  thousand  inhabitants,  more  or 
less,  they  may  take  it  for  granted  that  if  they  get  the  depot  in 
reasonable  distance  they  will  have  to  pay  the  company  a  good 
bonus  for  it. 

Within  the  last  two  or  three  years  several  new  churches 
have  been  built  in  Pleasant  Hill.  The  place  was  made  a  sta- 
tion last  year,  and  Brother  Horn  was  appointed  there.  He  de- 
termined to  build  a  church.  It  seemed  almost  impossible,  after 
all  that  had  so  lately  been  done  in  the  way  of  church-building, 
that  he  should  succeed.  But  he  did.  The  result  of  his  efforts 
is  a  substantial,  handsome  brick  edifice  of  good  size,  of  neat, 
churchly  appearance,  and  out  of  debt.  It  is  situated  on  the  side 
of  the  new  town  which  lies  in  the  direction  of  the  old,  so  as  to 
be  accessible  to  both.  The  only  objection  that  I  could  make 
was  that  it  was  on  ground  that  was  rather  low.  I  like  to  see  a 
church  on  a  high  and  commanding  site. 

On  the  last  Sunday  in  July  it  was  dedicated.  A  debt  of  sev- 
en hundred  dollars  was  to  be  met.  The  subscription  made  for 
this  purpose  amounted  to  eight  hundred  and  ten  dollars. 

The  congregation  which  assembled  could  not  be  accommo- 


422  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

dated  at  all,  and  many  who  came  were  compelled  to  go  awav. 
There  had  been  a  meeting  in  progress  during  the  week,  and 
the  Church  was  strengthened  by  several  accessions.  After  a 
year  of  indomitable  perseverance  and  great  labor,  the  pastor  was 
encouraged  by  evident  and  substantial  fruit  of  his  toil.  The 
foundations  are  stronglv  laid  here,  and  I  think  that  prosperity 
will  follow  and  will  be  permanent. 

From  Pleasant  Hill  I  went  out  to  Harrisonville  on  Monday, 
and  preached  there  at  night.  The  Church  there  seems  to  be  in 
a  good  condition.  It  suffered  a  good  deal  during  the  war.  Their 
house  of  worship  was  very  mucn  mutilated,  but  has  been  put  in 
good  repair  since.  A  railroad  is  in  course  of  construction,  but 
the  depot  is  to  be  a  mile  from  town.  Our  church  is  on  the  side 
of  the  town  which  is  nearest  to  the  road. 

At  this  place  I  found  an  old  friend.  During  my  first  term  at 
Centenary  Church  in  St.  Louis  he  was  a  clerk  in  a  Main  Street 
house.  At  a  meeting  at  which  Brother  Watts  assisted  me  he 
was  awakened,  and  after  a  few  days  joined  the  Church.  From 
the  first  he  was  a  faithful  member.  The  incidents  of  his  awak- 
ening and  conversion  were  such  as  to  endear  him  to  me  verv 
greatly.  I  found  him  on  this  visit  in  a  comfortable  house  and 
doing  a  profitable  business;  at  the  head  of  a  lovely  familv,  an 
active  and  decided  Christian.  My  heart  was  full  of  gratitude  on 
his  account.  I  shall  not  soon  forget  William  H.  Allen.  We 
parted  in  tears.  Such  friendship,  I  make  no  doubt,  will  be  re- 
newed and  perpetuated  in  the  world  to  come. 

From  this  point  my  travels  in  South-west  Missouri  fairlv  com- 
menced. I  was  with  Brother  Webster  in  his  buggv.  This  is  a 
vehicle  worthy  of  a  place  in  history.  The  editor  of  the  Advocate 
pronounced  it  the  best  buggy  he  ever  rode  in.  The  horses  were 
made  for  the  road,  and  the  driver  was  equal  to  the  rest  of  the 
outfit.  On  Tuesday  night  we  reached  Papinsville,  in  Brother 
Monroe's  work,  and  found  a  meeting  of  considerable  interest  in 
progress.  There  was  a  very  large  congregation  assembled  in 
the  open  air  just  on  the  edge  of  town. 

Brother  Monroe  has  been  blessed  in  his  work  this  year,  and 
has  exerted  an  excellent  influence  in  the  community.  He  is 
held  in  honor  for  his  work's  sake,  as  a  faithful  minister  of  the 
Lord  Jesus.  There  have  been  several  members  gathered  in 
here,  and  a  decided  public  interest  is  felt  in  the  cause  of  God. 


1869-70.  St.  Louis  Conference.  423 

Our  own  Church  is  intrenched  in  the  affections  of  the  people. 
A  movement  is  on  foot  for  the  erection  of  a  house  of  worship. 
It  will  require  a  united  and  very  earnest  effort  to  accomplish  it; 
such  an  effort  as  will  bring  out  fully  the  resources  of  the  coun- 
try. I  trust  they  may  succeed.  If  this  year's  work  shall  be  fol- 
lowed up  faithfully  hereafter,  the  Church  will  prosper  within 
the  bounds  of  this  circuit. 

We  were  received  here  with  the  most  cordial  hospitality. 
There  are  signs  of  the  war  here.  The  most  enterprising  men 
are  just  now  beginning  fairly  to  recover  from  the  ruin  in  which 
the  struggle  left  them.  This  state  of  things  very  much  embar- 
rassed Church  enterprises. 

From  Papinsville  we  drove  to  Nevada  City.  This  place  bids 
fair  to  enjoy  a  prosperous  existence.  It  is  to  be  a  sort  of  railroad 
center.  It  is  already  growing  rapidly,  and  is  a  business  center 
for  a  considerable  scope  of  country.  Our  Church  is  strong  here. 
Brother  Murphy  is  the  pastor,  and  is  warmly  supported  in  the 
work  by  faithful  and  efficient  local  preachers.  We  had  preach- 
ing here  on  Wednesday  night,  in  the  court-house.  People  came 
to  Church  from  remote  portions  of  the  country.  The  spacious 
audience-room  was  too  small  for  the  occasion.  It  was  greatly 
crowded,  while  many  persons  failed  to  get  in.  There,  as  indeed 
in  every  place  on  the  tour,  the  most  profound  attention  was  giv- 
en to  the  word  preached.  I  trust  there  was  a  salutary  influence 
from  the  evening  service. 

On  this  circuit  both  a  church  and  parsonage  are  in  contem- 
plation. The  exigences  of  the  Society  demands  a  church  in  the 
town,  and  they  are  already  prepared  to  build.  A  very  great 
work  has  been  done  here  since  the  war.  God  has  been  very 
gracious  to  his  servants. 

Our  next  point  was  Lamar.  This  is  a  'mission  field,  and 
Brother  Barneby  is  the  missionary.  On  some  portions  of  the 
work  there  has  been  a  good  degree  of  prosperity.  The  town  of 
Lamar,  however,  has  been  regarded  as  inaccessible  until  very 
lately.  A  few  members  with  one  local  preacher  have  moved  in 
here,  and  a  small  Society  may  be  organized.  There  is  a  Baptist 
Church  in  the  place,  in  which  I  preached  to  a  small  congrega- 
tion on  Thursday  night.  There  was  good  attention,  and  I  trust 
some  good  was  done. 

A  short  day's  drive  on  Friday  brought  us  to  the  camp-ground 


424  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

at  Red  Oak.  Here  we  found  a  good  area  of  comfortable  seats, 
a  brush  arbor  over  them,  a  very  tasteful  pulpit,  and  a  rather  poor 
excuse  for  a  preachers'  tent.  I  found  a  home  at  Mrs.  McCune's, 
about  a  mile  from  the  ground.  This  family  has  had  a  sad  war 
history.  The  saddest  part  of  it,  however,  belongs  to  the  fost- 
war  period.  It  is  a  case  of  outrage,  crime,  and  executive  clem- 
ency scarcely  paralleled  even  in  the  war  times.  The  murder  of 
Mr.  McCune  and  the  subsequent  history  are  facts  well  known 
in  Missouri. 

The  hospitality  I  enjoyed  with  this  excellent  family  will  ever 
be  remembered  with  a  feeling  of  gratitude.  The  father  was  a 
most  hospitable  man.  His  son,  though  under  pressure  of  heavy 
and  malicious  lawsuits,  dispenses  the  same  open  -  handed  and 
generous  hospitality.  Although  they  are  not  members  of  our 
Church,  they  kept  open  house  during  the  meeting,  and  received 
all  comers  with  a  heartiness  that  touched  me.  May  the  richest 
blessings  of  Providence  and  grace  rest  upon  them! 

The  District  Conference  was  held  in  connection  with  this 
meeting.  There  was  a  fair  attendance,  and  some  important 
business  transacted.  A  convention  was  called  to  meet  this  fall 
in  Sarcoxie,  with  a  view  of  establishing  a  high  school  for  the 
South-west.  This  convention  has  full  authority  to  proceed  with 
the  enterprise.  The  measure  is  not  premature.  The  demand 
for  an  academy  here  is  urgent;  indeed,  I  may  say  imperative. 

Important  measures  were  proposed  with  respect  to  missions 
in  the  district.  Several  changes  of  boundary  between  the  cir- 
cuits were  suggested,  with  a  view  of  giving  the  missions  suffi- 
cient strength  to  be  self-sustaining.  Besides  equalizing  the 
strength  of  the  various  circuits,  they  say  it  puts  them  in  better 
shape,  and  is  altogether  preferable  in  every  respect.  If  this  new- 
adjustment  of  boundaries  is  accepted  by  the  bishop,  they  are 
willing  for  every  one  of  the  charges  to  be  stricken  from  the  list 
of  missions.  Thev  are  more  than  willing:  they  greatly  desire 
it.  They  desire  it  for  these  reasons: 

1.  All  the  circuits  thus  bounded  will  be  able  to  support  their 
preachers. 

2.  When  there  is  a  missionary  appropriation  the  people  become 
•indifferent  about  the  support  of  the  preacher,  thinking  that  there 

is  no  great  need  for  them  to  do  much,  as  he  gets  money  from 
some  other  source. 


1869-70.  St.  Louis  Conference.  425 

3.  The  missionary  treasury  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference  is 
bankrupt,  and  many  of  the  preachers  in  wealthier  portions  of 
the  work  seem  to  be  wholly  indifferent  about  it.  What  little 
conscience  they  may  have  on  the  subject  evaporates  at  Confer- 
ence in  the  shape  of  solemn  resolutions. 

4.  When  the  missionary  goes  to  his  work  depending  on  what 
the  preachers  promise  so  solemnly,  he  is  doomed  to  a  bitter  expe- 
rience before  the  year  is  out.  The  people  are  easy  because  their 
pastor  is  to  get  help  from  abroad,  and  the  preachers  in  those  por- 
tions of  the  work  from  which  the  money  is  to  come  are  easy  be- 
cause— because  what? 

5.  When  the  preachers  solemnly  promise  at  Conference  to 
raise  missionary  money  early  in  the  year  it  is  a  sure  sign  that 
they  will  not  take  collections  until  late,  and  then  in  a  care- 
less way,  so  as  not  to  get  much  money.  There  are  honorable 
exceptions,  as  will  appear  at  Conference;  but  the  dishonorable 
rule  remains  nevertheless. 

One  young  brother  who  had  not  learned  the  ways  of  the  St. 
Louis  Conference  took  it  for  granted  that  the  pledge  of  the 
preachers  to  raise  the  money  was  as  good  as  money;  so,  on 
reaching  his  mission,  to  meet  an  exigence  he  contracted  a  debt, 
to  be  paid  at  his  first  quarterly  meeting.  The  presiding  elder 
came,  but  brought  no  money.  Creditors  were  seen  under  em- 
barrassment, such  explanations  were  made  as  the  case  allowed, 
and  they  were  put  off  until  the  second  quarterly  meeting,  when, 
as  he  thought,  the  money  would  certainly  be  forth-coming.  But, 
behold,  when  the  time  comes  there  is  no  money.  This  young 
brother,  having  a  conscience  about  promising  to  pay,  was  morti- 
fied above  measure.  The  case  was  laid  before  the  presiding  eld- 
er, who  entered  into  it  heartily  and  borrowed  the  monev  for  the 
voung  brother;  but  the  borrowed  money  remains  unpaid  to  this 
moment,  and  from  present  prospects  the  generous  borrower  does 
not  feel  very  certain  that  he  will  not  himself  have  to  pay  it  ulti- 
mately. It  pains  me  to  write  these  things,  but  they  are  matters 
of  public  notoriety,  to  the  dishonor  of  the  Church. 

The  camp-meeting  at  Red  Oak  was  a  season  of  grace. 
There  were  many  conversions.  The  congregation  on  the  first 
Sunday  was,  I  think,  the  largest  I  ever  saw  at  a  camp-meeting. 
The  latter  part  of  the  meeting  was  very  much  disturbed  by  rains, 
but  on  the  last  Sunday  not  less  than  four  or  five  hundred  persons 


426  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

collected  in  a  drizzling  rain.  There  had  been  heavy  rains  the 
night  before;  the  ground  was  saturated,  the  seats  were  wet,  the 
straw  was  literally  soaked,  and  drops  of  wa'ter  were  falling  from 
the  arbor.  Yet  this  large  congregation  assembled  under  the  ar- 
bor, and  remained  two  hours  during  service.  • 

I  have  no  doubt  that  the  editor  of  the  Advocate  will  tell  his 
readers  about  this  part  of  the  meeting,  as  he  was  there  the  last 
two  or  three  days.  By  the  way,  the  people  here  conferred  the 
doctorate  on  him.  Henceforth  let  no  one  question  the  title.  The 
voice  of  the  South-west  confers  it.  It  comes  directly  from  the 
fountain-head  of  all  American  honors — the  people.  I  was  pres- 
ent to  congratulate  the  Doctor  at  this  important  epoch. 

This  meeting  was  in  the  bounds  of  Brother  Tillery's  circuit 
The  reorganization  of  our  Church  in  this  region  began  under 
his  labors  at  Granby  in  the  fall  of  1865.  At  a  time  when  no 
Southern  Methodist  preacher  could  call  his  life  his  own  here  he 
came,  led  bv  a  strange  providence.  A  wonderful  revival  at  Gran- 
by attended  his  labors,  by  which  he  became  so  intrenched  in  the 
affections  of  all  classes  as  not  only  to  make  his  person  safe,  but 
also  to  secure  to  him  an  open  door  in  every  direction.  His  work 
is  historic. 

Brother  Webster  has  also  done  a  great  work  here.  With  the 
requisite  good  sense,  enterprise,  and  courage  for  the  work,  he 
took  the  district  three  years  ago.  He  has  adventured  into  new 
regions,  looked  after  Church  property,  and  in  many  instances 
shown  himself  a  father  to  the  preachers.  In  many  cases  where 
the  quarterage  fell  short  he  has  given  up  his  quota  to  the  circuit 
preacher  who  was  more  needy  than  he.  He  has  been  self-pos- 
sessed when  threatened  with  the  "boys  in  blue"  if  he  did  not 
forego  the  prosecution  of  property  claims.  Armed  men  in  a 
Quarterly  Conference,  coming  to  enforce  a  surrender  of  prop- 
erty to  the  Northern  Church,  have  failed  to  intimidate  him.  He 
and  Tillery  and  Barnaby  and  others  have  conquered  a  peace. 

It  seems  incredible,  but  my  conviction  is  that  our  Church  is 
this  dav  the  strongest  in  South-west  Missouri.  They  are  greatly 
in  need  of  church-buildings,  and  will  soon  have  them.  Every 
preacher  in  this  district  promptly  raised  the  amount  assessed  on 
his  charge  to  pay  arrearages  on  last  year's  missionary  drafts. 

E.  M.  MARVIN. 

St.  Louis,  August  10,  1870. 


1869- 7°-  »SV«  Louis  Conference,  427 

LEXINGTON  DISTRICT. 

There  is  a  good  report  of  the  Lexington  District 
by  Rev.  J.  R.  Bennett,  the  presiding  elder,  which 
the  reader  will  no  doubt  peruse  with  pleasure. 
Brother  Bennett  was  a  high-toned  Christian  gen- 
tleman, whose  influence  was  elevating  in  the 
Church  and  in  society  as  well.  He  was  an  able 
and  faithful  expounder  of  the  word  of  God,  and 
was  highly  esteemed  by  those  who  knew  him.  His 
brother  was  a  prominent  minister  of  the  Virginia 
Conference,  whose  high  position  in  the  Church 
was  well  known  throughout  the  Connection.  He 
did  much  in  promoting  the  success  and  prosperity 
of  Randolph-Macon  College.  Brother  J.  R.  Ben- 
nett says : 

I  found  all  the  preachers  in  their  respective  charges,  having 
entered  on  their  work  with  a  determination  to  cultivate  well  that 
part  of  the  Lord's  vineyard  com  miffed  to  their  care.  I  found  on 
several  of  the  circuits  that  we  have  not  one  Sabbath-school  under 
the  control  of  our  Church,  the  few  that  are  in  operation  being 
union  schools.  I  urged  the  preachers  to  organize  schools  under 
our  management.  I  expect  on  my  next  round  to  find  several 
such  organized  and  in  running  order.  I  found  the  finances  in 
the  following  charges  fully  up,  or  nearly  so,  to  the  first  quarter: 
Warrensburg  Station,  Warrensburg  Circuit,  Lexington  and  Wa- 
verly  Stations.  The  remainder  of  the  charges  are  greatly  defi- 
cient, which  ought  not  to  be  the  case. 

On  the  Warrensburg  Circuit  Brother  W.  J.  Brown  reports 
his  charge  in  a  good  spiritual  condition ;  had  held  a  good  meet- 
ing at  Blackwater  Chapel,  with  several  conversions  and  acces- 
sions to  the  Church.  The  quarterly  meeting  was  held  at  Knob- 
noster:  a  pleasant  meeting  and  six  additions  to  the  Church. 

Brother  Wood  is  in  charge  of  Warrensburg  Station.  He  is 
doing  a  good  work;  has  a  fine  Sunday-school.  The  congrega- 
tion and  Church  embrace  a  large  portion  of  the  intelligent  and 


428  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

business  men  of  the  place.  He  is  well  received  and  cared  for, 
and  will,  I  hope,  accomplish  much  good  this  year. 

Warsaw  Circuit. — Brother  Meek  is  in  charge.  This  work  he 
found  in  a  feeble  state,  needing  much  pastoral  care,  which  he  is 
giving  to  it,  and  is  pushing  forward  all  the  various  interests  of 
the  Church. 

Clinton  Circuit. — Brother  Wooldridge  is  on  this  circuit.  This 
charge  needs  careful  culture  and  the  organization  of  Sunday- 
schools,  that  the  children  may  be  taught  the  pure  doctrines  of 
the  word  of  God.  The  financial  system  here  needs  looking  after 
by  the  Board  of  Stewards.  I  am  looking  forward  to  a  most  pros- 
perous year  for  that  circuit,  under  the  pastoral  care  of  so  labo- 
rious and  successful  a  minister  as  Brother  Wooldridge. 

Dorer  Circuit. — Brother  Talbott  is  the  pastor.  He  is  very 
industrious  in  his  pastorate,  visiting  from  house  to  house.  We 
have  but  one  Sunday-school  under  the  care  of  our  Church. 
This  is  the  one  in  the  town  of  Dover,  in  a  flourishing  condition, 
under  the  superintendence  of  Brother  W.  Eastwood.  The  spir- 
itual state  of  the  Church  reported  good ;  finances  low. 

Saline  Circuit  is  in  charge  of  Brother  Woodard.  There  are 
three  Sunday-schools  in  this  charge  working  successfully;  oth- 
ers suspended  during  the  winter  months.  The  financial  system 
adopted  in  this  charge  a  few  years  ago  works  well  while  in  op- 
eration, but  owing  to  the  classes  not  having  the  assessments  for 
the  year  but  little  was  paid  on  the  first  quarter.  I  hope  the 
amount  for  Missions  will  be  raised  in  full,  as  Brother  Woodard 
is  a  working  man. 

Wavcrly  Station  was  organized  last  March,  and  reported  as  a 
station  at  our  last  Conference.  Brother  Mister,  a  transfer  from 
the  Memphis  Conference,  has  charge  of  this  station ;  was  well 
received  by  his  people,  and  is  working  hard  to  build  up  the 
Church,  looking  after  all  its  interests.  We  have  had  a  flourish- 
ing Sunday-school,  which  is  evidence  that  we  ought,  wherever 
practicable,  to  organize  our  own  Sunday-schools.  There  was  a 
union  school  taught  in  our  church,  which  was  dissolved  early 
last  year,  and  a  school  organized  of  our  own  under  the  ex- 
cellent management  of  Brother  A.  T.  Winsor.  It  is  now  by 
far  the  most  flourishing  school  in  town.  This  station  has  some 
noble  men  in  it,  willing  to  give  of  their  substance  to  sustain  the 
Church. 


1869-70.  St.  Zoom's  Conference.  429 

Lexington  Station,- under  the  pastoral  care  of  Dr.  Camp,  is  in 
a  healthy  spiritual  condition:  class  and  prayer  meetings  well 
attended  and  full  of  life.  The  pastor  and  the  Church  are  pray- 
ing and  looking  to  God  for  a  gracious  revival  of  his  work. 
Here  all  the  interests  of  the  Church  are  diligently  attended  to. 
The  Sunday-school  is  prosperous  and  well  conducted  by  the 
Superintendent,  Brother  E.  Winsor. 

ST.  Louis  DISTRICT. 

We  find  the  following  brief  sketch  of  the  St. 
Louis  District  in  the  Advocate  of  February  16: 

We  date  back  to  the  beginning  of  the  year,  commencing  with 
the  solemn  covenant  of  the  watch-night  meetings,  which  were 
held  in  all  the  city  churches.  Dr.  Clinton  made  it  the  com- 
mencement of  services  at  the  First  Church,  which  were  pro- 
tracted during  the  month  of  January  and  resulted  happily  in 
the  edification  of  the  Church  and  thirty-seven  additions  to  the 
membership.  During  the  same  month  protracted  exercises 
were  held  at  Wesley  Chapel  and  St.  Paul's  Church  with  good 
results,  and  three  accessions  at  the  former  and  seven  at  the 
latter. 

The  removal  of  the  Centenary  congregation  from  their  old 
place  of  worship  has  been  already  made  known.  The  Sabbath 
services  are  held  regularly  at  the  Temple  building,  at  the  north- 
west corner  of  Fifth  and  Walnut  Streets.  A  room  in  the  new 
Centenary  Church  has  been  completed  and  fitted  up  for  the 
regular  official  and  social  meetings.  The  room  is  the  one  to  be 
used  for  the  infant  class  of  the  Sunday-school.  The  first  meet- 
ing held  in  the  new  building  was  that  of  the  leaders  and  stew- 
ards on  Monday  night.  The  various  services  of  the  congrega- 
tion have  been  interesting.  Dr.  Munsey  preached  for  them  on 
Sabbath  last.  The  audience  was  larger  even  than  his  crowded 
congregation  at  the  First  Church.  It  was  not  our  privilege  to 
be  present,  but  we  hear  that  the  occasion  was  one  of  transcend- 
ent interest.  Dr.  Munsey  had  been  complaining  during  the 
week,  but  his  effort  was  one  sustained,  and  abounded  in  wonder- 
ful intellectual  power  and  religious  effectiveness. 

Two  protracted  meetings  have  been  held  at  St.  John's  Church, 
at  both  of  which  Bishop  Marvin  occupied  the  pulpit  frequently. 


43°  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

The  meeting  commenced  last  week  will  continue  through  the 
present  week.  There  has  been  considerable  religious  interest 
and  a  number  of  additions  to  the  Church. 

The  presiding  elder  reports  interesting  and  profitable  quar- 
terly meetings.  The  one  now  in  progress  at  Bridgeton  exhibits 
particular  interest,  and  is  continued  this  week.  Brother  Adkisson 
was  present  at  our  preachers'  meeting  on  Monday.  He  reports 
five  accessions  to  his  charge,  and  his  Church  in  a  good  spiritual 
condition. 

The  regular  services  at  Kirkwood  are  kept  up  by  Brother 
Robinson,  the  pastor,  which  continue  well  attended  and  other- 
wise sustained  with  interest.  There  is  great  sorrow  felt  among 
us  on  account  of  the  precarious  state  of  the  health  of  Brother 
Axtell,  who  is  known,  wiih  his  excellent  wife  and  a  few  others, 
to  have  originated  the  Church  there.  May  God  spare  him  to 
the  Church  and  to  his  family  yet  longer! 

We  had  the  pleasure  of  spending  the  Sabbath  at  Mount  Olive, 
where  Brother  Shumate  is  holding  a  protracted  meeting  with 
encouraging  prospects.  Brother  St.  Clair  reports  progress  on 
the  Maremac  and  St.  Clair  Bircuits.  Thus  all  along  the  line 
God  is  blessing  his  Church  with  increasing  religious  interest. 

REV.  W.  S.  WOODARD.      . 

Our  friend  whose  name  appears  above  has  fa- 
vored us  with  his  autobiography,  which  reads  as 
follows : 

I  was  born  on  White's  Creek,  seven  miles  from  Nashville, 
Tenn.,  March  31,  1829.  In  the  autumn  of  that  year  my  parents 
moved  to  Missouri  and  settled  in  Cooper  County,  near  where 
Prairie  Home  now  is.  In  1856  we  moved  to  Polk  County,  Mo., 
and  settled  on  Sac  River,  not  far  from  where  Morrisville  now  is. 

I  was  baptized  in  Cooper  County  by  Jesse  Green;  was  con- 
verted in  August,  1846,  at  Ebenezer  Camp-ground,  in  Green 
Countv,  and  gave  my  hand  to  David  Ross  for  Church-member- 
ship, and  was  received  into  full  fellowship  in  my  grandfather's 
house  in  March,  1847,  by  Jesse  Derrick;  was  licensed  to  preach 
at  Lower  Shady  Grove  Camp-ground,  Polk  County,  April  6, 
1850,  by  the  Quarterly  Conference  of  Bolivar  Circuit,  B.  R. 
Johnson,  presiding  elder,  and  R.  A.  Foster,  pastor;  was  admit- 


1869-70.  Si.  Louis  Conference.  431 

ted  on  trial  as  an  itinerant  preacher  by  the  St.  Louis  Confer- 
ence at  its  session  held  at  Independence  in  July,  1850,  and  was 
appointed  to  Mount  Vernon  Circuit. 

I  left  my  father's  house  on  the  first  day  of  August,  1850,  for 
my  circuit,  since  which  time  I  have  been  a  homeless  wanderer, 
but  am  looking  for  a  home  in  my  heavenly  Father's  house,  in 
the  "city  which  hath  foundations,  whose  builder  and  maker  is 
God."  My  first  circuit  contained  twenty-eight  regular  appoint- 
ments, extending  into  five  counties,  and  had  in  it  two  county 
seats,  Mount  Vernon  and  Greenfield.  My  second,  third,  and 
fourth  appointments  were  also  quite  large. 

Some  time  in  the  winter  I  visited  Ben  Johnson,  whom  I 
had  known  two  years  before  in  Steelville.  I  left  an  appoint- 
ment, and  on  my  next  round  I  preached  the  first  Methodist 
sermon  ever  preached  in  that  town.  I  organized  a  class  there 
in  the  early  part  of  1854.  ^ty  fourth  appointment  was  to 
Neosho  Circuit,  which  I  did  not  travel  because  of  an  accident 
in  which  my  thigh  was  broken  while  on  a  visit  to  my  parents 
immediately  after  Conference.  I  was  not  able  to  do  any  thing 
till  Christmas,  after  which  I  taught  school  the  rest  of  the  year. 

In  1855  I  was  sent  to  Versailles;  thence  to  Osceola,  Wolf 
Island,  Carthage,  Stockton,  De  Soto.  Here  the  war  overtook 
me,  and  I  remained  on  this  circuit  three  and  a  half  years.  At 
the  Conference  which  met  at  St.  Louis  in  March,  1864, 1  was  ap- 
pointed to  Steelville  District.  At  the  next  Annual  Conference 
the  Steelville,  Greenville,  and  Cape  Girardeau  Districts  were 
all  blended  into  one,  and  called  Iron  Mountain  District,  to  which 
I  was  appointed.  It  embraced  all  of  South-east  Missouri. 
The  next  year  the  Greenville  and  Cape  Girardeau  Districts 
were  restored, and  I  was  assigned  to  the  latter,  which  I  traveled 
two  years.  At  the  Conference  held  at  Kansas  City  in  1867  this 
was  divided,  and  the  upper  end  was  called  Potosi,  to  which  I 
was  returned.  I  had  now  been  on  this  district  four  and  a  half 
years,  changing  its  name  every  year.  Bishop  Kavanaugh,  at 
my  earnest  request,  reluctantly  relieved  me  from  district  work, 
and  sent  me  to  Saline  Circuit,  which  I  served  two  years. 

In  1870  Bishop  McTyeire  read  me  out  to  Rolla  District. 
After  the  Conference  adjourned  I  begged  him  earnestly  to  re- 
lieve me  from  the  district,  which  he  did  and  sent  me  to  Cham- 
ois Circuit.  This  was  the  great  mistake  of  my  life.  I  should 


432  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

have  gone  to  the  Rolla  District.  For  twenty  years  I  have  rued 
my  rashness  on  that  occasion.  During  all  these  years  I  have 
never  had  an  appointment  that  has  given  me  a  support.  The 
penalty  of  my  rebellion  has  been  protracted  and  painful. 

In  1872  Bishop  Pierce  transferred  me  to  the  Western  Con- 
ference and  appointed  me  to  the  Council  Grove  District.  From 
this  I  was  relieved  the  next  spring  and  returned  to  the  Chamois 
Circuit;  was  next  sent  to  Aullville  Circuit,  then  to  Lamonte, 
then  to  Neosho  District.  A  kick  from  my  horse  put  me  on 
crutches  until  Christmas.  My  appointment  for  that  year  was 
Sunday-school  Agent.  Then  I  served  Papinsville,  Chilhowie, 
Wellington,  and  Chapel  Hill  Circuits.  Since  that  I  have  been 
three  years  on  the  superannuated  list,  and  served  three  years  as 
Conference  colporter.  I  am  now  on  Herndon  Circuit. 

I  was  ordained  deacon  by  Bishop  Paine  in  September,  1852, 
in  Lexington,  and  elder  in  Jefferson  City  by  Bishop  Kava- 
naugh  in  September,  1854. 

I  was  married  to  Miss  Eliza  B.  Spencer  September  5,  1852. 
I  have  been  preaching  forty  years;  served  twenty-five  as  pas- 
tor, seven  as  presiding  elder,  three  as  colporter,  and  one  as 
Sunday-school  Agent,  making  thirty-six  years  of  effective 
work.  The  three  years  I  rested  were  spent  in  Avriting  a  book 
which,  if  ever  published,  will  be  the  best  historv  of  Methodism 
in  Missouri  ever  written.  I  feel  safe  in  saying  that  I  have  come 
nearer  preaching  in  every  county  in  the  State  than  any  other 
man  now  living.  I  have  served  the  Church  either  as  pastor  or 
presiding  elder  in  almost  every  county  south  of  the  Missouri 
River.  Except  W.  B.  McFarland,  W.  M.  Prottsman,  and  H. 
N.  Watts,  I  have  been  effective  longer  than  any  other  man  in 
the  St.  Louis  Conference. 

I  know  of  no  reason  why  I  may  not  be  effective  yet  twenty 
years  longer.  I  am  not  conscious  of  having  any  bad  habits.  I 
drink  onlv  one  cup  of  coffee  a  day.  I  do  not  use  tobacco  in  any 
way — that  bane  of  Methodist  preachers — never  did,  and  I  hon- 
estly think  that  all  preachers  should  have  sense  and  grace 
enough  to  eschew  the  filth}'  weed. 

The  early  part  of  my  ministry  was  blessed  with  many  gra- 
cious revivals  of  religion,  and  I  received  hundreds  of  persons 
into  the  Church.  Recently  my  labors  have  not  been  so  fruitful 
of  immediate  results. 


1869-70.  Si.  Louis  Conference.  433 

The  support  and  education  of  four  sons  and  four  daughters 
have  burdened  me,  and  I  have  been  compelled  to  supplement 
an  inadequate  support  by  "  serving  tables."  I  have  lived  in  a 
parsonage  only  three  years  during  the  forty  years  of  my  min- 
isterial labors.  I  have  always  paid  my  house-rent  out  of  what 
the  Church  paid  me,  and  have  never  received  all  of  the  salarv 
allowed  me.  I  believe  I  have  never  failed  to  collect  as  much 
or  more  for  Missions  and  other  claims  than  the  charge  had  ever 
paid  before. 

I  have  been  assistant  secretary  of  my  Conference  for  thirteen 
years,  twelve  of  which  I  was  statistical  secretary.  I  have  tried 
to  do  my  duty,  but  am  conscious  of  many  failures.  I  think  I 
have  done  some  good.  The  future  of  this  life  is  overcast  with 
clouds,  but  beyond  all  is  fair  and  bright.  God  favored  me  with 
one  of  the  best  of  women  for  a  wife.  We  have  walked  in  com- 
panionship with  each  other  nearly  thirty-eight  years.  She  al- 
ways has  been,  and  still  is,  economy  personified.  But  for  her  I 
never  could  have  kept  my  head  above  the  waves.  My  greatest 
grief  to-day  is  that  I  cannot  furnish  her  a  home  in  which  to 
spend  her  last  days;  but  the  "Lord  will  provide,"  and  in  his 
own  good  time,  when  our  work  is  all  done,  he  will  take  us 
home  to  bask  in  his  smiles  and  rest  forever  beneath  the  shade 
of  the  tree  of  life. 

CHARLESTON  DISTRICT. 

Though  we  adverted  to  the  fact  in  our  his- 
tory of  the  Church  in  the  Missouri  Conference,  its 
importance  will  justify  a  further  remark  here  that 
we  get  more  historic  information  from  the  reports 
made  by  the  presiding  elders  of  their  respective 
districts  than  from  any  other  source.  When  they 
make  their  reports  as  full  as  they  should  be  they 
cover  the  ground  and  embrace  almost  the  entire 
scope  of  Church  history.  They  tell  us  all  about 
the  preachers,  what  they  are  doing;  tell  us  what 
the  Church  is  accomplishing  in  building  houses  of 
worship,  parsonages,  school-houses,  colleges,  and 
28 


434  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

orphan  homes;  tell  us  what  they  are  doing  for 
Missions,  for  Sunday-schools,  for  our  religious  lit- 
erature, and  every  thing  else  relating  to  the  inter- 
ests of  our  beloved  Zion.  In  view  of  these  facts, 
we  take  pleasure  in  giving  these  reports  a  place  in 
our  history. 

We  find  an  interesting  account  of  Charleston 
District  from  the  pen  of  the  presiding  elder,  Rev. 
J.  C.  Berryman,  whose  name  is  a  household  world 
in  that  part  of  the  State,  in  which  he  has  labored 
for  scores  of  years.  Thoroughly  indoctrinated  in 
the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  and  built  upon  his  most 
holy  faith,  long  has  he  been  a  strong  pillar  of  the 
Church  in  South-east  Missouri.  He  is  one  of  the 
bright  lights  of  the  world — a  living  monument  of 
the  glorious  achievement  of  Christianity  in  the 
salvation  of  man.  Such  faithful  witnesses  consti- 
tute a  tower  of  strength  in  the  cause  of  righteous- 
ness. Read  his  report: 

Having  just  closed  the  second  round  of  quarterly  meetings 
on  the  Charleston  District,  it  might  be  interesting  to  your  read- 
ers for  the  presiding  elder  to  give  a  sort  of  general  statement 
of  the  condition  of  our  Church  in  this  part  of  the  St.  Louis 
Conference.  And  what  shall  I  say?  God  knows  I  have  no  dis- 
position to  say  any  thing  that  will  do  no  good,  and  much  less 
to  say  any  thing  that  might  do  harm.  There  are  a  great  many 
good  and  intelligent  people  here,  and  for  the  majority  I  can  say 
they  gladly  receive  Southern  Methodist  preachers.  Presbyterians, 
Old  School  and  Cumberlands,  have  some  very  good  preachers 
and  members  within  the  bounds  of  this  district;  and  between 
them  and  us  there  subsist  the  most  amicable  relations.  The 
Baptists  are  more  numerous,  but  here,  as  everywhere  else, 
"Jordan  lies  between."  Still  they  are  doing  a  good  work,  and 
between  us  there  is  no  strife.  Methodist  doctrines  and  usages, 


1869-70.  St.  ^oui's  Conference.  435 

however,  are  almost  universally  acceptable  to  the  people  of  this 
region.  Hence  our  ministry  is  generally  well  attended,  and 
our  membership  respectable  in  numbers  and  social  position. 

But  there  is  one  tiling  here  that  grieves  me.  Familv  religion 
is  woefully  negle'cted  by  our  people.  After  much  inquiry,  I  feel 
sorry  to  say  that  not  one  in  ten  heads  of  families  in  our  Church 
here  pays  any  regard  to  the  domestic  altar.  This  I  would  not 
publish  but  with  the  hope  of  provoking  them  to  think  what  they 
are  doing.  My  parents  were  Methodists,  but  I  confess  that  the 
utter  neglect  of  family  religion  on  their  part  would  have  inv 
pressed  my  young  mind  most  unfavorably  of  the  religion  they 
professed,  for  I  should  naturally  have  argued  that  a  religion 
which  did  not  deeply  and  daily  interest  them  for  their  children 
was  not  worth  much.  And  in  what  way  can  parents  so  success- 
fully manifest  and  carry  out  this  interest  for  the  salvation  of 
their  children  as  in  reading  the  word  of  God  and  praying  with 
them  and  for  them  daily  ?  I  confess  my  ignorance  of  any 
thing  that  can  counteract  the  neglect  of  this  duty  in  the  educa- 
tion of  the  household.  God  has  constituted  each  head  of  a 
family  a  priest  to  offer  up  the  morning  and  the  evening  sacrifice 
for  his  domestic  charge,  and  I  hesitate  not  to  say  that  the  man 
w  ho  neglects  this  duty  does  so  at  the  peril  of  his  own  soul.  It 
may  be  a  cross;  but  "must  Jesus  bear  the  cross  alone,  and  all 
the  world  go  free?" 

Our  Sunday-schools  are  very  well  sustained  in  a  few  places, 
but  as  a  general  thing  this  great  auxiliary  to  the  parental  and 
ministerial  duties  and  obligations  is  too  much  neglected — not 
for  want  of  willingness  on  the  part  of  the  children  to  attend, 
but  chiefly  from  a  lazy  indifference  on  the  part  of  the  pastors 
and  parents.  Where  these  two  classes  of  persons  take  an  inter- 
est in  Sunday-schools  they  always  succeed.  To  be  sure  there 
are  many  places  in  the  country  where  serious  difficulties  have 
to  be  encountered. 

We  mention  one  of  these  difficulties:  the  want  of  suitable 
houses.  I  do  suppose  there  is  no  part  of  the  State  of  Missouri 
in  which  there  is  so  great  a  destitution  of  church-buildings  in 
proportion  to  membership  and  resources.  There  are  a  few 
good  houses  belonging  to  the  Church  here ;  but  in  the  majority 
of  cases  we  hold  our  meeting  in  school-houses,  groves,  and 
private  dwellings.  And  I  seriously  fear  that  it  will  be  a  long 


436  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

time  before  there  is  any  very  great  improvement  in  this  partic- 
ular. Nor  it  is  for  want  of  ability  to  do  better.  Other  causes 
may  have  operated  to  retard  the  progress  of  our  Church  in  this 
and  in  other  interests,  but  I  verily  believe  -we,  as  a  denomina- 
tion, would  have  been  far  in  advance  of  what  we  are  if  our 
preachers  had  not  generally  come  to  this  part  of  our  work  with 
a  pre-existing  prejudice  against  the  "swamp  country,"  as  it  is 
called,  with  a  determination  to  get  out  of  it  as  soon  as  possible. 
The  people  here  are  aware  of  this  fact,  and  it  greatly  damages 
their  zeal  in  the  upbuilding  of  the  Church.  I  recently  heard 
an  excellent  old  brother  express  the  wish  that  the  Conference 
would  send  no  preacher  to  the  Charleston  Circuit  who  did  not 
want  to  come.  We  are  doing  something  in  several  places  to 
build  new  churches  and  repair  and  finish  others. 

Our  finances  are  likely  to  be  tolerably  well  sustained  this  year 
on  most  of  the  circuits.  From  my  observation  in  regard  to  this 
interest  I  have  come  to  the  settled  conclusion  that  as  a  rule  the 
best  cultivated  fields  repav  the  laborer  most  bountifullv.  I  have 
seen  no  people  among  whom  this  rule  worked  more  certainly  than 
among  the  people  of  this  district.  I  could  give  examples  to  prove 
that  I  am  not  mistaken.  While  one  circuit  reports  quarterly  al- 
most a  clean  "balance-sheet,"  another  equally  able  and  willing 
is  greatly  in  arrears.  People  want  value  received  for  their  mon- 
ey. The  man  who  goes  straight  forward  doing  his  whole  duty 
as  one  who  must  give  account  to  God  will  be  amplv  sustained 
here.  But  they  expect  us  to  do  as  we  have  promised,  "to  be 
men  of  one  work." 

The  preachers  from  several  of  the  circuits  have  reported 
some  good  meetings,  a  number  of  conversions  and  additions  to 
the  Church.  I  may  say,  without  making  distinctions  which 
might  give  offense,  that  the  circuit  preachers  on  Charleston 
District  are  generally  doing  their  work  like  men  "  constrained 
by  the  love  of  Christ"  and  love  for  the  souls  of  the  people  to 
whom  they  preach.  I  do  look  for  success  and  general  improve- 
ment on  almost  all  of  the  charges  this  year. 

FORT  SCOTT. 

A  correspondent  of  the  St.  Louis  Christian 
Advocate  writes  about  the  affairs  of  our  Church 


1869-70.  St.  L.OUIS  Conference.  437 

in  and   around  Fort  Scott  in  the  following  lan- 
guage : 

The  South-west  is  becoming  considerably  noticed  in  secular 
as  well  as  religious  papers.  There  is  some  little  political  ex- 
citement in  this  section,  though  it  is  hoped  that  peace  and  its 
attendant  blessings  will  be  entirely  restored  erelong.  May 
God  grant  it!  My  work  still  moves  on  harmoniously.  The 
presiding  elder,  Rev.  H.  W.- Webster,  has  enlarged  my  field  of 
operations,  adding  to  my  charge  a  portion  of  the  Little  Osage 
Circuit  consisting  of  four  appointments.  I  have  visited  every 
one  of  them.  They  are  promising  fields  of  labor,  and  a  more 
hospitable  and  sociable  set  of  people  I  have  never  seen.  These 
Societies  have  been  without  a  pastor  quite  awhile.  In  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Judge  Weyand's  residence  they  have  had  regular 
preaching;  the  judge,  a  man  who  is  constantly  alive  to  his  duty, 
supplying  the  vacancy. 

At  another  appointment  a  minister  of  another  Methodism 
(North)  than  ours  has  been  interfering  wonderfully,  telling  our 
people  that  the  two  branches  of  Methodism  are  just  about  to 
unite.  He  came  very  near  by  his  persuasive  eloquence  (?)  de- 
stroying our  Church,  consisting  of  about  thirty-five  members. 
The  above  statement  I  make  on  reliable  information.  They 
could  not  have  been  so  imposed  upon  if  they  had  taken  our  Ad- 
vocate. Of  course  they  were  not  posted  on  the  proceedings  of 
our  General  Conference.  The  preposterous  statements  of  these 
"  unification  "  preachers  ought  by  all  means  to  be  exposed.  We 
have  seen  to  our  entire  satisfaction  what  such  preaching  (?)  has 
done.  We  have  visited  members  where  the  M.  E.  Church, 
South,  has  been  proclaimed  "dead  to  all  eternity." 

How  long  will  these  things  exist?  Does  such  a  course  cre- 
ate and  promote  spirituality?  Is  it  leading  a  life  of  quietness 
and  peace  in  all  godliness  and  honesty?  Yet  our  membership 
holds  fast  with  unflinching  fidelity.  This  is  written  through  no 
ill-will  whatever,  but  just  doing  our  duty  in  telling  the  truth. 
May  God  graciously  bless  us! 

Our  third  quarterly  meeting  in  Fort  Scott  was  a  pleasant  in- 
troduction of  Southern  Methodism.  We  obtained  the  use  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  on  the  condition  that  on  Sabbath  morning 
the  service  be  conducted  in  the  Presbyterian  form — one  of  our 


•438  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

ministers  to  preach.  The  appointment  was  well  circulated. 
Rev.  N.  Duren,  of  Nevada  City,  was  with  us,  and  preached  with 
great  acceptability  to  a  large  and  attentive  audience.  The 
writer  of  this  tried  to  preach.  May  God  bless  his  efforts  to  the 
good  of  the  people!  After  preaching  Brother  Duren  adminis- 
tered the  sacrament;  Rev.  Mr.  Gardener,  pastor  of  the  Prebyte- 
rian  Church,  and  myself  assisting.  A  large  number  of  persons 
communed. 

I  regard  this  quarterly  meeting  as  an  omen  of  success.  We 
will  always  thank  God  for  the  zealous  interest  and  remarkably 
excellent  discourse  of  Brother  Duren.  Pray  for  these  "regions 
beyond,"  which  you  appropriately  style  the  stereotyped  sign- 
board of  Methodism. 

SEDALIA. 

As  we  have  just  given  the  reader  an  account  of 
the  organization  of  Southern  Methodism  in  Fort 
Scott,  he  will  here  find  a  statement  of  its  resuscita- 
tion and  reorganization  in  the  beautiful  little  city 
of  Sedalia: 

It  is  well  known  that  our  Church  has  had  a  mere  nominal 
existence  in  this  place  for  a  long  time.  From  the  commence- 
ment various  difficulties  have  embarrassed  our  efforts.  We  la- 
bored against  wind  and  tide.  Many  of  our  professed  friends, 
whose  religious  sympathies  were  with  us,  regarded  our  organi- 
zation as  unfortunate,  our  success  hopeless,  and  failure  and  re- 
treat only  a  question  of  time.  Hence  they  followed  afar  off. 

Furthermore,  our  Society  had  no  "  tabernacle  "  to  worship  in, 
no  house  of  prayer  they  could  call  their  own;  had  to  wander 
from  hall  to  court-house.  So  they  were  houseless,  despised,  and 
otherwise  forsaken.  Though  never  disbanded,  yet  from  re- 
movals, dismissals,  and  other  influences,  the  little  Societv  had 
diminished  to  eight  members;  so  something  had  to  be  done,  or 
discomfiture  and  retreat  were  inevitable. 

That  something  has  been  done.  Through  the  zeal  and  ef- 
forts of  Brother  L.  Pulliam,  our  pastor,  it  was  arranged  that  our 
presiding  elder  and  Dr.  Jones,  of  Boonville,  were  to  be  with  us 
one  week,  to  be  followed  by  Bishop  Marvin  the  next  week. 
The  weather  was  delightful,  the  moonlight  favorable.  Large 


1869-70.  St.  Louis  Conference.  439 

congregations  greeted  the  ministers  in  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
and  listened  politely,  attentively,  and  seriously  to  the  preaching 
of  the  word.  As  Dr.  Jones  contrasted  the  advantages  and  su- 
periority of  the  Christian's  hope,  his  life,  and  his  triumph  with 
the  gilded  pageantry  of  earth  and  all  the  world  worships  as 
good  and  great  the  difference  seemed,  as  it  really  is,  immeas- 
urable, and  the  claims  of  religion  appeared  irresistible.  The 
judgments  of  many  were  deeply  convinced,  and  some  were 
moved  and  cried  for  mercy. 

All  felt  that  Christianity  had  in  these  men  able  and  eloquent 
advocates,  and  that  it  was  a  rare  privilege  to  attend  upon  their 
ministry.  But  duty  called  them  to  other  fields.  The  brethren 
present,  however,  kept  up  the  services  and  supplied  the  pulpit 
till  Bishop  Marvin  arrived  and  took  charge  of  the  meeting.  Me 
was  exhausted  from  continuous  labors.  Our  situation  was  duly 
realized  as  a  crisis  in  our  history.  His  sympathy  was  fully  en- 
listed, and  animated  his  efforts  in  our  behalf.  Crowds  unusual- 
ly large  for  this  place  assembled  to  hear  him.  His  preaching 
was  in  the  spirit  and  with  power,  abounding  in  pointed  applica- 
tion, persuasive  eloquence,  and  impassioned  appeal.  The  ne- 
cessity of  his  departure  from  us  was  greatly  deplored.  Peni- 
tents multiplied  as  the  meeting  progressed,  and  the  last  night 
the  altar  was  crowded.  There  were  a  number  of  conversions, 
eighteen  additions  to  the  Church,  backsliders  reclaimed,  the 
people  blessed  and  encouraged,  and  Southern  Methodism,  as  a 
living  reality,  brought  prominently  before  the  people  and  es- 
tablished upon  an  enduring  basis. 

As  another  result  of  this  meeting  we  have  projected  a  plan 
for  the  erection  of  a  house  of  worship — have  already  secured  an 
eligible  lot.  With  the  favor  of  the  great  Head  of  the  Church 
our  little  Society  will  enter  upon  a  career  of  usefulness  in  the 
accomplishment  of  much  good.* 

Rev.  L.  M.  Lewis  gives,  in  the  St.  Louis  Chris- 
tian Advocate,  an  interesting  description  of  his  tour 
through  South-east  Missouri.  We  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  making  his  acquaintance  when  he  first  came 
to  this  State,  about  thirty-five  years  ago.  When 

*Rev.  P.  Phillips,  in  St.  Louis  Christian  Advocate. 


44°  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

we  were  in  charge  of  Independence  Female  Col- 
lege he  made  our  home  his  first  stopping-place  on 
reaching  the  far  West.  He  seemed  to  think  that 
he  had  reached  his  destination  in  Missouri,  that 
this  country  was  good  enough  for  him,  and  that  he 
would  travel,  with  his  interesting  little  family,  no 
farther  toward  the  setting  sun.  He  impressed  us 
favorably  on  first  sight,  and  a  more  thorough  ac- 
quaintance with  him  convinced  us  of  the  correct- 
ness of  our  early  impression.  He  was  cultured, 
talented — a  philanthropist,  a  true  patriot,  a  Chris- 
tian gentleman,  and  an  able  and  faithful  minister 
of  the  gospel.  We  feel  gratified  that  his  name  ap- 
pears in  this  history,  while  our  hearts  were  stricken 
with  grief  by  the  sad  intelligence  that  he  had  fallen 
by  the  ruthless  hand  of  the  "last  enemy."  The 
reader  will  no  doubt  be  pleased  with  his  following 
historic  sketch: 

Passing  up  the  road  from  Pilot  Knob  one  has  to  wait  at  Bis- 
marck about  three  hours  for  the  down  train  if  he  desires  to  go 
in  the  direction  of  Belmont;  but,  after  enduring  that  agony 
quite  a  number  of  times,  I  have  learned  a  trick.  I  now  go  up 
to  Irondale,  where  the  hospitable  home  of  my  quondam  prison 
friend,  Capt.  Blackman,  furnishes  me  a  good  shipper  and  other 
comforts,  and  some  pleasant  talk  of  old  scenes  at  Johnson's 
Island  in  1863  and  1864,  until  the  train  comes  along,  when  I  get 
on  board  and  off  for  the  country  below. 

On  this  trip  I  stopped  at  Fredericktown,  which  has  greatly 
changed  in  the  last  few  years,  for  in  every  direction  new  build- 
ings are  being  constructed,  and  the  limits  extended  until  it  is 
assuming  quite  a  business  appearance.  I  was  soon  in  kind 
hands,  meeting  Gen.  Rorzier,  the  indefatigable  friend  of  prog- 
ress in  Missouri.  He  is  a  pleasant  gentleman,  and  has  large 
views  on  all  subjects  involving  the  development  of  the  country. 
He  is  confident  that  a  railroad  from  Ste.  Genevieve  or  Grand 


1869-70.  St.  Louis  Conference.  441 

Tower  through  to  Iron  Mountain  and  Pilot  Knob  will  be  con- 
structed in  a  few  years,  giving  us  access  to  the  inexhaustible 
coal  fields  of  Illinois.  Lead,  iron,  and  other  minerals  are  being 
discovered  in  the  vicinity  of  Fredericktown  in  vast  quantities, 
and  the  attention  of  the  capitalists  is  being  directed  to  their  de- 
velopment. 

I  attended  the  Sunday-school  and  got  myself  into  business, 
for  as  they  could  do  no  better  they  made  me  superintendent. 
There  seems  to  be  some  lethargy  on  this  subject  among  our 
people  here.  Lack  of  teachers  and  want  of  regular  and  punct- 
ual attendance  are  slowly  doing  the  work  of  destruction.  On 
Sunday  morning  and  also  at  night  I  bore  my  testimony  to  the 
truth  of  the  gospel.  I  preached  to  them  as  best  I  could,  and 
trust  it  may  not  be  without  fruit  in  the  years  to  come. 

Monday  and  Tuesday  were  spent  in  visiting  the  people  and 
forming  acquaintances.  I  dare  not  fail  to  make  mention  of  the 
"  Whittling  Club  "  of  Fredericktown.  Manv  country  towns  pos- 
sess the  benefit  of  such  an  organization,  but  certainly  this  ex- 
cels. I  tender  them  my  compliments. 

I  did  not  forget  the  Advocate,  and  I  believe  the  number  of 
subscribers  will  be  increased  from  that  section.  I  feel  it  as 
much  my  duty  to  urge  its  circulation  as  it  is  to  attend  to  any 
other  portion  of  the  outside  work  imposed  upon  me  by  the  Con- 
ference; especially  when  one  has  so  good  an  argument  as  the 
excellence  of  said  paper.  As  good  as  it  now  is,  I  did  not  fear  to 
assert  that  it  would  be  better  still  when  the  lengthy  articles  on 
debates,  Campbellism,  baptismal  regeneration,  and  a  few  other 
like  things  shall  be  gotten  through  with.  Has  it  not  been  a 
long  investigation,  that  of  Campbellism?  It  does  seem  to  me 
that  our  people  ought  to  be  well  posted  by  this  time.  How  long 
has  that  war  of  words  raged?  It  has  been  longer  than  I  will 
make  an  effort  to  remember. 

Education  is  appreciated  in  Madison  County.  Many  of  the 
youth  in  and  around  town  will  go  off  to  school  next  fall.  There 
is  a  considerable  desire  to  secure  the  location  of  the  School  of 
Mines  at  this  point,  in  connection  with  a  seminary  of  learning, 
but  what  are  its  prospects  of  success  the  future  must  determine. 

Dr.  Joseph  Dines  ably  represents  our  Church  at  Frederick- 
town,  the  place  having  been  made  a  station  last  year.  He  found 
the  house  out  of  repair,  the  congregation  run  down  to  nothing, 


442  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

and  the  entire  field  generally  embarrassing;  but  I  learn  that  great 
improvement  has  taken  place,  and  the  prospects  of  the  future  are 
more  cheering.  They  need  a  new  house,  on  an  eligible  lot  and 
•well  inclosed.  I  should  like  to  say  many  things  about  the  good 
people  here;  but  I  must  prosecute  my  journey,  according  to  my 
plan,  down  the  road  farther  toward  the  south. 

Certainly  there  will  be  no  lack  of  food  for  man  and  beast  next 
year.  I  have  never  seen  a  finer  promise  in  my  life.  Corn  will 
be  abundant;  and  oats  and  grass,  beyond  computation,  are  being 
gathered,  hauled  in,  stacked,  and  stored  away.  At  every  turn 
new  fields  of  grain  catch  the  eye,  and  all  around  men  are  busy 
cutting  down  the  forests  and  preparing  for  more  extensive  plant- 
ing and  sowing  next  year. 

This  railroad  is  a  great  blessing  to  the  section  it  traverses. 
People  are  coming  in  and  buying  property;  towns  are  springing 
up ;  business  of  every  sort  is  increasing.  Now  is  the  time  that 
we,  as  a  Church,  should  act.  Let  the  losses  sustained  heretofore 
by  our  sloth  teach  us  a  lesson,  and  make  us  wise  to-day.  Eligi- 
ble lots  should  be  secured  in  all  these  prospective  towns,  whilst 
the  proprietors  are  bidding  for  settlers,  and  offering,  free  of 
charge,  building  sites  to  all  Christian  denominations. 

I  stopped  at  Marble  Hill,  with  Brother  Rider.  He  is  heroic 
in  his  devotion  to  Southern  Methodism.  Singly  and  alone  he  is 
preparing  to  build  a  church,  where  he  and  his  neighbors  may 
enjoy  the  preaching  of  the  gospel.  He  intends  to  beg  evervbody 
he  meets,  and  I  bid  him  Godspeed,  and  would  urge  all  persons 
to  lend  him  a  helping  hand.  I  believe  no  nobler  object  can  be 
presented  than  the  one  in  which  Brother  Rider  is  engaged.  The 
traveler  who  reaches  this  point  is  still  in  the  world  of  minerals. 
Excavations  and  explorations  are  now  being  made  in  the  hills 
around.  The  ministers  of  our  beloved  Methodism  are  earnestly 
engaged  in  their  work,  and  I  hear  of  success  and  of  much  good 
being  done  in  various  parts  of  this  country. 

At  Allenville,  through  the  munificence  of  a  wealth  v  ladv,our 
Church  will  soon  be  housed.  I  saw  the  foundation,  the  lumber, 
and  the  men  at  work.  At  present  there  is  not  a  single  place  of 
worship  in  the  town.  Nothing  seems  to  be  doing  in  Church 
matters  at  Morley,  a  very  interesting  and  important  point.  From 
this  place  I  went  to  Commerce,  where  I  was  entertained  bv  Sis- 
ter Moore,  who  is  most  deeply  interested  in  religious  affairs.  By 


1869-70.  *5V.  Louis  Conference.  443 

her  untiring  industry  and  indefatigable  perseverance,  aided  by  a 
few  faithful  ones,  a  nice,  neat,  and  comfortable  brick  church  af- 
fords us  a  place  of  worship.  This  is  in  Brother  Davis's  charge. 
He  is  reported  as  a  man  of  unflagging  zeal  and  energy.  He  has 
lately  had  a  gracious  revival  at  Big  Prairie,  where  he  was  aided 
by  the  active  and  indomitable  agent  of  Bellevue  Collegiate  In- 
stitute, the  locum  tencns  of  South-east  Missouri. 

After  preaching  at  Commerce  on  Sunday,  and  attending  to 
sonic  business  on  Monday,  1  turned  my  course  again  toward 
the  railroad,  passing  through  boundless  fields  of  rustling  grain, 
and  over  rich  lands  studded  with  the  largest  poplar  trees  I 
ever  saw.  After  a  short  meeting  with  Gen.  Watkins,  whom 
I  am  glad  to  number  among  my  best  friends,  I  crossed  the  rail- 
road and  passed  through  many  neighborhoods,  terminating  at 
last  in  Bloomfield.  From  this  point  Capt.  E.  W.  Hill  sent  me 
in  a  nice  buggy  and  behind  a  fast  horse  to  Spring  Hill. 

Back  again  at  home  after  a  long  absence,  I  feel  like  a  new 
man.  I  find  the  foundation  of  the  new  college  building  com- 
pleted. They  will  proceed  at  once  to  build  the  walls.  I  have 
been  playing  the  antiquary  a  little  of  late,  and  will  let  you  know 
the  result  of  my  research  and  investigations. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

EDUCATIONAL. 

The  Age  in  Which  We  Live  Demands  of  the  Church  a  High, 
Thorough,  Christian  Education,  to  Combat  the  False  Theo- 
ries of  Scientific  Infidelity  and  Materialistic  Atheism — His- 
toric Sketch  of  Central  College,  Located  at  Fayette,  Mo. — 
Historic  Sketch  of  Central  Female  College,  Located  at  Lex- 
ington, Mo. —  Historic  Sketch  of  Woodlawn  Seminary, 
Located  near  O'Fallon,  Mo. — Brief  Notices  of  Howard  Col- 
lege, at  Fayette,  Mo.,  and  St.  Charles  College,  Located  at  St. 
Charles,  Mo. — Other  Institutions. 

THE  paramount  importance  of  a  Christian  edu- 
cation has  not  been  overlooked  by  the  M.  E. 
Church,  South,  in  Missouri.  For  many  years  our 
Church  has  been  making  commendable  advance- 
ment in  this  great  and  noble  cause.  She  has  seen 
the  necessity  of  raising  the  standard  of  education 
in  her  institutions  of  learning  to  keep  abreast  with 
the  progressive  age  in  which  we  live — an  age  of  un- 
paralleled progress  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  in  lit- 
erature and  philosophy,  and  in  the  application  of 
steam  and  electricity  to  all  kinds  of  machinery, 
thereby  developing  the  various  resources  of  the 
country  in  a  manner  hitherto  unknown,  and  to  the 
admiration  of  an  astonished  world. 

Our  people  have  been  fully  aware  that  Christian 
education,  deep  and  high  and  thorough,  is  the  bul- 
wark of  the  Church  and  the  safeguard  of  the  Bi- 
ble. This  is  another  strong  reason  why  the  Church, 
(444) 


1869-70.  Educational.  445 

in  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  and  in  intellectual 
development,  should  not  be  a  whit  behind  the  learn- 
ing of  this  wicked  and  godless  world,  whose  boast- 
ful champions  are  now  employing  their  learning, 
science,  and  philosophy  to  subvert  Christianity  and 
overthrow  and  destroy  the  Church  of  God. 

Secular  education,  divorced  from  the  Bible, 
tends  to  skepticism,  infidelity,  and  bald  atheism,  in 
the  form  of  rationalism,  materialism,  agnosticism, 
evolutionism,  and  all  other  false  isms.  When  men 
repudiate  the  Bible  they  are  out  on  a  stormy  sea, 
without  pilot,  chart,  compass,  or  rudder,  driven 
hither  and  thither  by  every  wind  of  false  specula- 
tion, false  science,  false  philosophy,  and  will  inevi- 
tably strand  or  wreck  upon  some  ill-fated  reef  or 
rock.  Such  has  been  their  destiny,  and  such  al- 
ways will  be  their  destiny.  The  house  builded  on 
the  sand  cannot  do  otherwise  than  fall  when  the 
furious  storm  comes. 

Secular  education  exclusive  of  the  Bible  is  the 
devil's  prime  factor  in  the  fearful  work  of  human 
destruction.  "Knowledge  is  power,"  just  as 
much  so  when  used  for  evil  as  when  used  for  good. 
The  devil,  an  intellectual  giant,  does  his  fatal  work 
by  knowledge,  without  which  he  could  cut  no  fig- 
ure in  the  wreck  and  ruin  of  our  world.  It  was  by 
knowledge  he  beguiled  Eve,  and  the  only  way  to 
conquer  him  is  to  meet  his  false  knowledge  with 
superior  true  knowledge. 

The  exclusion  of  the  Bible  from  our  public 
schools  is  an  unmistakable  demonstration  of  the 


446  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

controlling  influence  to  which  materialistic  infidel- 
ity, aided  by  Roman  Catholicism,  has  already  at- 
tained. When  this  victory  was  achieved,  and  the 
Bible  was  excluded  from  our  public  schools,  no 
doubt  Satan  and  his  fiendish  hosts  kept  jubilee  in 
hell  for  quite  awhile,  making  the  infernal  regions 
reverberate  with  their  vociferous  shouts  of  victory. 

To  exclude  all  religious  denominational  books 
from  the  public  schools  is  right  and  what  might  be 
expected;  but  the  Bible  is  not  a  sectarian,  not  a 
denominational  book.  It  says  nothing  about  Ro- 
man Catholics,  Episcopalians,  Methodists,  Baptists, 
Presbyterians,  Campbellites,  or  any  other  sect  or 
denomination.  God,  who  is  its  Author,  gave  it  to 
the  -world  as  a  universal  benediction  to  all  mankind 
in  all  ages  and  placesi  Therefore,  no  human  au- 
thority, legislative,  judicial,  or  executive,  has  any 
right  to  interdict  or  prohibit  its  use  in  schools  or 
anywhere  else.  To  read  the  Bible  is  a  God-given 
right  to  any  person  and  to  all  persons,  and  what 
man  or  set  of  men  shall  dare  say  I  shall  not  read 
the  Bible  when  and  where  I  please?  Thus  the 
reader  cannot  fail  to  see  the  imperative  necessity 
of  a  thorough  Christian  education  to  confute  all 
false  notions  and  theories  that  antagonize  the 
Bible. 

It  is  well  known  that  there  have  always  been 
more  learned  men  in  the  Church  than  out  of  it, 
more  learned  believers  than  learned  infidels.  The 
Church  and  education  are  companions.  Philos- 
ophy is  the  handmaid  of  Christianity,  and  there  is 


1869-70.  Educational.  447 

no  antagonism  between  true  science  and  the  Bible, 
for  God  is  the  Author  of  both  nature  and  revela- 
tion, and  they  must  necessarily  harmonize,  though 
vigorous  efforts  have  been  made  by  certain  scien- 
tists to  show  that  they  do  not.  Such  attempts  have 
always  proved  abortive,  and  will  continue  to  do  so. 
But  now,  perhaps  more  than  ever  before,  is  the 
Church  called  upon  to  defend  the  truth  against 
the  assaults  of  an  artful,  strategic,  subtle  infidel- 
ity, which  wears  the  garb  of  Christianity  and 
"  steals  the  livery  of  Heaven  in  which  to  serve  the 
devil." 

INSTITUTIONS  OF  LEARNING. 
The  M.  E.  Church,  South,  has  established  in  all 
parts  of  the  State  educational  schools  of  all  grades, 
from  the  elementary  school  to  the  college  proper, 
whose  curriculum  in  comprehensiveness  and  thor- 
oughness will  compare  favorably  with  that  of  any 
literary  institution  in  the  country.  As  has  always 
been  the  case  in  the  history  of  education,  some  of 
these  schools  and  seminaries  have  run  their  race 
and  finished  their  course,  and  are  now  among  the 
things  that  were ;  while  others  have  been  more 
permanent  and  durable,  and  are  at  this  present 
writing  accomplishing  great  good  in  educating  the 
youth  of  the  country  to  qualify  them  for  the  re- 
sponsible duties  of  active  life  and  to  fit  them  for 
high  and  honorable  stations  in  society  and  in  the 
Church. 

CENTRAL    COLLEGE. 

The  following  historic  sketch  of  Central  College, 


H  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

at  Fayette,  Mo.,  has  been  sent  to  us  through  the 
kindness  of  Bishop  E.  R.  Hendrix: 

The  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South,  after  mature  delib- 
eration, and  under  the  leadership  of  educated  ministers  and 
laymen  \vho  knew  something  of  what  it  took  to  make  a  college, 
determined  about  the  middle  of  the  century  to  build  in  the  State 
of  Missouri  one,  and  only  one  college,  of  the  highest  grade, 
upon  which  should  be  concentrated  the  energies  of  the  entire 
denomination  in  the  State.  The  proposition  originated  in  the 
St  Louis  Conference  at  its  session  in  Lexington,  Mo.,  in  Sep- 
tember, 1852.  The  following  extract  from  the  report  of  the 
Committee  on  Education  as  adopted  by  the  Conference  shows 
the  mind  of  the  Church  on  the  subject: 

"In  the  judgment  of  your  committee  the  time  has  come 
\vhen  the  educational  wants  of  our  people  require,  and  the  re- 
sources of  our  people  justify  the  establishment  of  a  literary  in- 
stitution of  the  highest  order  in  Missouri.  But  while  we  need 
and  must  have  the  facilities  afforded  by  this  order  of  institution, 
your  committee  are  of  the  decided  opinion  that  it  is  the  true 
policy  of  the  Church  to  unite  upon  and  undertake  the  upbuild- 
ing of  one  such  institution  in  Missouri,  and  but  one.  In  ac- 
cordance with  these  sentiments,  your  committee  recommend 
that  this  Conference,  in  an  official  way,  signify  to  the  Missouri 
Conference  our  willingness  to  unite  and  co-operate  with  them 
in  such  a  plan  for  the  establishment  of  a  college  as  shall  be  mut- 
ually agreed  upon  by  the  two  Conferences." 

This  paper,  which  was  drawn  up  by  the  Rev.  Joseph  Boyle, 
D.D.,  was  brought  before  the  Missouri  Conference  two  weeks 
later  in  the  city  of  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  when  Rev.  E.  M.  Marvin, 
Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Education,  brought  in  a  report 
of  hearty  concurrence  in  the  action  of  the  St.  Louis  Confer- 
ence, which  report  was  adopted.  D.  R.  McAnally,  Joseph 
Boyle,  and  Nathan  Scarritt,  of  the  St.  Louis  Conference,  and 
E.  M.  Marvin,  William  Holmes,  and  Dr.  R.  Bond,  of  the  Mis- 
souri Conference,  were  appointed  commissioners  to  mature  the 
matter  and  to  call  an  educational  convention  composed  of  one 
preacher  and  two  lay-men  from  each  presiding  elder's  district 
in  the  two  Conferences  to  inaugurate  the  proposed  college. 

This  convention  met  in  St.  Louis  April  13,  1853,  and  was 


1869-70.  Educational. 

composed  of  twenty  clerical  and  sixteen  lay  delegates.  D.  R. 
McAnally  was  elected  President,  and  N.  Scarritt  was  chosen 
Secretary.  After  a  session  of  two  days  this  convention  located 
the  college  at  Fayette,  Mo.,  where  there  was  already  a  nourish- 
ing high  school  under  the  auspices  of  our  Church,  with  the 
largest  attendance  of  students  of  any  institution  in  the  State, 
and  determined  to  raise  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  for  the 
needs  of  the  college,  not  less  than  fifty  thousand  dollars  of  the 
amount  to  be  secured  before  the  institution  should  commence 
operations.  The  two  Conferences  promptly  approved  the  ac- 
tion of  the-  convention,  and  appointed  fifteen  curators  each  to 
carry  out  these  plans,  and  also  appointed,  each,  an  agent  to 
bring  the  needs  of  the  college  to  the  attention  of  the  people  at 
large. 

The  charter  of  Central  College,  which  was  the  name  agreed 
on  as  designating  the  new  institution,  was  granted  by  the  Mis- 
souri Legislature  in  March,  1855;  and  the  building  having  in 
the  meantime  been  erected  on  the  site  of  the  high  school  at 
Fayette,  which  was  burned  in  1854,  tne  doors  of  the  college 
were  opened  to  students  on  September  21,  1857.  Rev.  Nathan 
Scarritt,  whose  pen  had  done  so  much  to  awaken  interest  in  the 
proposed  college,  was  in  charge  as  President  pro  tempore  and 
Professor  of  Ancient  Languages;  Rev.  Carr  W.  Pritchett  was 
Professor  of  Mathematics;  and  Eli  Offut  was  Principal  of  the 
Preparatory  Department. 

As  has  been  the  case  with  many  an  institution  of  world-wide 
fame,  the  early  history  of  the  college  was  a  struggle  for  life  on 
account  of  the  lack  of  funds.  The  college  had  three  Presidents 
in  as  many  years,  none  of  whom  could  supply  funds  necessary 
to  pay  the  salaries  of  competent  instructors.  The  needed 
funds  were  slower  coming  in  on  account  of  the  financial  panic 
the  year  of  the  opening  of  the  college,  and  because  of  the  an- 
ticipated outbreak  of  the  Civil  War.  Despite  all  these  difficulties, 
there  was  a  fine  attendance  of  students  until  the  war  troubles 
closed  the  doors  of  the  college. 

The  close  of  the  war  found  the  college  dismantled,  but  an  he- 
roic Church  rallied  in  an  educational  convention  at  Fayette  to 
re-establish  it.  Learning  from  the  past,  it  was  determined  not 
to  re-open  the  college  until  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  had 
been  secured  in  good  subscriptions  for  an  endowment.  In  the 
29 


450  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

meantime,  while  a  classical  seminary  was  being  conducted  in 
the  college  building,  Rev.  Dr.  W.  A.  Smith,  the  newly  elected 
President,  amid  much  enthusiasm  which  he  had  awakened,  ad- 
dressed himself  with  success  to  the  work  of  securing  the  need- 
ed endowment.  He  died  in  sight  of  the  goal,  but  others  took 
up  the  work  until  the  glad  result  was  reached.  Rev.  \V.  M. 
Rush  secured  some  twenty  thousand  dollars,  and  was  active  in 
collecting  the  old  subscriptions.  Much  of  the  new  endowment 
was  in  subscriptions  of  amounts  based  on  the  supposed  value  of 
certain  lots  in  several  of  our  cities  which  decreased  consider- 
ably in  value  before  they  were  sold  and  funded. 

Rev.  J.  C.  Wills,  D.D.,  was  called  to  the  presidency,  which 
place  he  filled  from  1871  to  1878,  when  his  death  filled  all  hearts 
with  sorrow.  He  impressed  himself  on  the  students  and  the 
public  as  a  superior  educator,  and  a  man  of  lofty  personal 
character.  A  good  reputation  had  been  made  for  thorough 
scholarship  and  excellent  discipline,  when  in  1878  Rev.  Eugene 
R.  Hendrix  was  elected  to  the  presidency  to  succeed  the  la- 
mented Wills.  He  gave  the  next  two  quadrenniums  to  the  col- 
lege, removing  a  debt  of  over  twelve  thousand  dollars,  besides 
making  the  final  payment  on  the  original  building  of  seventeen 
thousand  dollars,  more  than  doubling  the  endowment,  enlarg- 
ing the  campus  from  five  acres  to  ten,  in  the  very  heart  of  the 
town,  securing  Stephen's  Scientific  Hall,  a  gymnasium,  and 
Centenary  Chapel — all  at  a  cost  of  nearly  fifty  thousand  dollars, 
besides  building  up  a  library  of  about  five  thousand  volumes, 
adding  several  new  chairs  and  greatly  increasing  the  attendance 
of  students.  Wills  Hall  was  erected  during  this  period  in 
memorv  of  Dr.  J.  C.  Wills,  a  most  valuable  friend  of  the  col- 
lege. Mr.  Robert  A.  Barnes,  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  endowed  two 
chairs,  one  bearing  the  name  of  his  mother  and  the  other  his 
own  name.  Curators  and  other  friends  of  the  college  sub- 
scribed liberally  to  endow  a  chair  to  be  known  as  the  Marvin 
Professorship  of  Moral  Science  and  Christian  Evidences. 

In  1886,  when  Dr.  Hendrix  was  elected  one  of  the  bishops  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South,  Prof.  O.  H.  P.  Cor- 
prew,  the  Nestor  of  the  Faculty,  became  acting  President  or 
Chairman  of  the  Faculty  until  June,  iSSS,  when  Rev.  T-  D. 
Hammond,  D.D.,  was  unanimouslv  chosen  for  the  place  which 
he  has  so  ably  filled  as  President  of  the  college.  The  college 


1869-70.  Educational, 

has  never  lacked  able  professors,  among  whom  may  be  men- 
tioned F.  X.  Foster,  W.  G.  Miller,  E.  A.  Allen,  and  W.  B.  Smith, 
aside  from  the  present  members  of  the  Faculty.  In  some  de- 
partments, notably  in  the  study  of  English  according  to  the 
historical  method,  Central  College  was  the  pioneer  among 
Western  colleges.  A  religious  atmosphere  has  pervaded  the 
college  since  its  opening,  and  hundreds  of  its  students  have 
been  converted  and  many  called  to  preach  the  gospel.  Her 
alumni  have  always  been  in  demand  to  man  our  institutions  in 
this  and  adjoining  States.  It  is  believed  that  the  college  never 
was  in  better  condition  to  realize  the  hopes  of  its  founders  of 
more  than  thirty  years  ago. 

It  would  not  be  proper  to  close  this  sketch  of  Central  Col- 
lege without  making  mention  of  the  noble  laymen  whose  cordi- 
al co-operation  did  so  much  to  make  possible  the  success  al- 
ready attained.  Among  these  was  Capt.  W.  D.  Swinney,  a 
man  of  as  warm  a  heart  as  of  great  business  capacity,  and  dur- 
ing his  life-time  no  one  else  was  thought  of  for  President  of  the 
Board  of  Curators;  Hon.  Truston  Polk,  a  graduate  of  Yale,  a 
superior  jurist,  and  an  able  statesman;  Adam  Hendrix,  for 
twenty  years  Treasurer  of  the  board,  successful  alike  as  an  edu- 
cator and  banker;  Nathan  Coleman,  who  gave  to  the  college 
the  President's  house,  in  recognition  of  Dr.  Wills's  loyalty  to 
its  interests  when  called  to  a  chair  in  Vanderbilt;  and  the  many 
noble  men  whose  bow  yet  abides  in  strength  in  and  out  of  the 
Board  of  Curators. 

CENTRAL,  FEMALE   COLLEGE. 

A  brief  history  of  this  institution  came  from  the 
pen  of  Judge  John  E.  Ryland,  of  Lexington,  Mo. 
Judge  Ryland  is  so  well  known  in  Missouri  as  a 
distinguished  jurist  and  able  statesman  that  no  word 
of  introduction  is  necessary  from  us.  He  was  a 
citizen  of  Lexington  before  the  college  was  organ- 
ized, and  has  been  a  citizen  ever  since;  hence 
he  is  a  proper  person  to  sketch  its  history.  Read 
what  he  says: 

This  institution  of  learning  is  located  at  Lexington,  in   La 


452  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

Fayette  County,  Mo.,  about  two  hundred  miles  west  of  St. 
Louis  and  about  fifty  miles  east  of  Kansas  City,  on  the  Missouri 
Pacific  railroad.  The  Missouri  River  flows  by  the  foot  of  the 
bluffs  on  which  the  college  is  situated. 

The  college  was  organized  in  the  year  1869,  and  incorporated 
under  the  laws  of  Missouri  by  the  name  of  "  Marvin  Female 
Institute,"  in  honor  of  that  great  and  good  man,  Bishop  E.  M. 
Marvin. 

The  college  is  situated  on  the  grounds  known  as  the  old 
Masonic  College,  about  which  the  battle  of  Lexington  was 
fought  in  the  year  1861.  The  campus  comprises  some  seven 
acres  of  ground,  and  is  the  highest  point  near  the  city  of  Lex- 
ington, and  from  which  a  commanding  view  of  four  or  five 
counties  is  had,  presenting  to  the  beholder  scenery  charming 
and  varied,  such  as  should  inspire  love  and  gratitude  and  praise 
to  Him  who  has  so  beautifully  adorned  our  land. 

The  grounds  and  original  building  were  donated  to  the  col- 
lege by  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Masons  in  Missouri,  upon  condi- 
tion that  an  institution  of  learning  should  be  established  and 
perpetuated  there;  and  that  as  much  as  fifty  thousand  dollars  be 
raised  and  expended  on  the  grounds;  which  conditions  have 
been  fully  complied  with  as  far  as  can  be.  The  money  has  been 
raised  and  expended  in  buildings  and  repairs,  and  there  has 
been  a  flourishing  and  continually  prosperous  institution  there- 
on. 

In  the  year  1884  the  Curators  erected  large  additions  to  the 
original  college  building,  and  now  a  large  three-story  edifice, 
lighted  with  gas,  heated  by  steam,  and  furnished  with  hydrant 
water  in  each  story,  affords  a  college  home  for  nearlv  one  hun- 
dred young  ladies  who  are  in  pursuit  of  an  education. 

Dr.  W.  T.  J.  Sullivan,  of  Mississippi,  was  elected  the  first 
President  of  the  college;  but,  he  failing  to  accept  the  position, 
the  place  was  filled  for  the  first  year  by  Dr.  William  Camp,  who 
was  then  the  pastor  of  the  Church  at  Lexington,  and  who  was 
greatly  instrumental  in  organizing  the  college.  Dr.  J.  O. 
Church,  of  Columbia,  Tenn.,  was  selected  President  for  the  sec- 
ond year,  and  was  continued  as  such  for  nearly  two  years,  when 
he  was  succeeded  by  Dr.  Sullivan,  who  had  been  chosen  the 
President  of  the  college  for  the  second  time.  He  remained  with 
the  institution  for  four  years,  when  he  resigned;  and  Dr.  W.  G. 


1869-70.  Educational.  453 

Miller,  of  Central  College,  Fayette,  Mo.,,  was  elected  to  fill  the 
vacancy.  Dr.  Miller  retired  at  the  end  of  the  first  year,  and 
Rev.  Marshall  Mcllhany  succeeded  him.  He  remained  nearly 
two  years,  and  was  followed  by  W.  F.  Kerdolff,  Jr.,  who  contin- 
ued in  charge  of  the  college  for  nine  years.  He  resigned,  and 
was  succeeded  by  Prof.  A.  A.  Jones,  of  Georgia,  who  is  now  the 
President  of  the  college. 

This  institution  has  had  a  varied  history  of  prosperity  and 
adversity,  of  sunshine  and  of  shadow.  But  since  her  doors  were 
thrown  open  in  the  year  1869,  and  the  daughters  of  our  land 
invited  to  enter  and  partake  of  the  rich  benefits  of  Christian 
education  under  the  auspices  of  our  beloved  Church,  they  have 
never  been  closed,  and  under  the  good  providence  of  God  they 
never  shall  be  until  time  shall  be  no  more. 

For  many  years  the  success  of  the  college  was  impeded  by 
debt.  But,  through  the  liberality  and  noble  efforts  of  some  who 
love  the  Church  and  God  and  humanity  more  than  they  do 
money,  this  incubus  was  cut  loose  from  the  college  and  buried 
in  the  sea  of  oblivion.  This  college  debt  was  disposed  of  in  1889, 
and  the  year  succeeding  this  event  was  one  of  the  most  prosper- 
ous in  all  its  history. 

Central  Female  College  is  located  in  one  of  the  most  prosper- 
ous, healthful,  and  refined  sections  of  our  great  State,  and  only 
needs  an  enlargement  of  the  buildings  and  an  increase  of  educa- 
tional facilities  in  the  way  of  more  apparatus  and  an  increase  of 
books  in  the  library,  and  a  liberal  endowment,  to  make  her  the 
leading  college  in  the  West  for  the  education  of  the  young 
women  of  the  land. 

Under  Christian  influences  this  college  has  already  begun  to 
perform  the  work  designed  by  her  founders,  and  has  already 
graduated  from  her  halls  fifty-five  voung  ladies,  some  of  whom 
have  gone  to  give  light  and  knowledge  to  the  benighted  hea- 
then and  to  tell  them  of  Jesus  and  his  great  love. 

Yes,  indeed,  nature  has  done  much  for  this  in- 
stitution. Beautiful  for  situation  is  Central  Female 
College — on  a  lovely  eminence,  lifted  above  sur- 
rounding objects,  and  commanding  one  of  the 
finest  scenic  views  that  ever  captivated  the  eye — a 


454  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

vast,  grand,  and  picturesque  landscape  of  flowery 
lawns  and  grassy  meadows,  of  gorgeous  fields  of 
golden  grain,  of  extensive  woodlands  adorning  the 
rolling  hills  with  their  towering  forest-trees,  of  the 
majestic  Missouri  River  flowing  through  this  varie- 
gated and  expansive  landscape,  which  includes  the 
beautiful  city  of  Lexington,  giving  additional  at- 
traction to  the  view. 

After  enjoying  this  fascinating  environment 
until  the  soul  is  filled  writh  the  beautiful  and  the 
sublime,  let  the  visitor  enter  the  magnificent  struct- 
ure of  the  college,  which  displays  the  finest  taste 
of  modern  architecture.  He  will  at  once  perceive 
that  art  has  done  no  less  for  the  college  than  nat- 
ure; that,  beyond  all  doubt,  they  have  vied  with 
each  other  for  the  prize.  Herein  he  will  find  every 
want  anticipated,  every  convenience  and  accom- 
modation of  the  latest  style  to  make  the  inmates 
perfectly  comfortable.  Nothing  has  been  omitted 
to  render  the  college  as  attractive  as  the  best  home 
in  city  or  country.  As  Central  College  proposes 
to  furnish  the  young  men  with  superior  educational 
advantages,  so  Central  Female  College  designs  to 
give  the  very  best  literary  facilities  to  the  young 
ladies  who  are  in  pursuit  of  a  liberal,  thorough, 
and  accomplished  education.  The  two  colleges 
belong  to  the  three  Conferences  of  this  State,  and 
in  justice  should  share  the  patronage  of  those  Con- 
ferences. 

WOODLAWN   SEMINARY,  AT   o'FALLOX,   MO. 

We  have  received  a  brief  sketch  of  this  literary 


1869-70.  Educational.  455 

institution  by  its  founder  and  President,  Prof.  R. 
H.  Pittman,  which  we  give  below: 

In  the  winter  of  1862  the  sainted  Robert  Loving  was  board- 
ing at  our  house,  and  teaching  the  public  school  in  the  neigh- 
borhood. Upon  a  call  for  recruits  to  the  Southern  cause  he  left 
for  the  army,  upon  the  condition  that  I  should  teach  the  remain- 
der of  the  term  for  which  he  was  employed.  This  I  did,  and  was 
thus  led  providentially  to  devote  my  life  to  the  employment  of 
teaching. 

In  the  fall  of  1863  I  opened  a  school  in  my  home  at  Fairview, 
St.  Charles  County,  Mo.,  for  the  thorough  Christian  education 
of  young  ladies.  The  school  increased  year  after  year  in  num- 
bers and  interest,  until  the  close  of  the  term  in  June,  1874,  when 
I  accepted  the  presidency  of  Howard  College,  with  the  hope  of 
accomplishing  more  good  and  building  up  that  institution.  But 
at  the  close  of  the  second  year  failing  health,  both  of  myself  and 
wife,  forced  me  to  give  it  up  just  when  we  began  to  realize  our 
hopes  of  success. 

Before  resigning  the  position  that  I  occupied  in  Howard  Col- 
lege my  former  friends  and  patrons  in  St.  Charles  County  pro- 
posed to  move  the  buildings  from  Fairview  to  a  small  farm  we 
owned  near  O'Fallon,  if  we  would  return  and  open  school  there 
— a  more  eligible  location  than  the  former. 

This  generous  offer  was  accepted  by  me,  and  on  September 
i,  1876,  I  organized  Woodlawn  Seminary.  The  school  here 
has  continued  to  the  present  time  (1890),  increasing  in  numbers 
until  the  capacity  of  Woodlawn  Seminary  is  filled  to  the  ut- 
termost. 

As  already  stated,  I  believe  it  was  providential  that  I  was  called 
to  this  work.  God  has  graciously  blessed  our  labors,  and  we  have, 
year  after  year,  had  the  great  pleasure  of  seeing  those  commit- 
ted to  our  care,  with  but  few  exceptions,  brought  to  Christ  and 
established  in  the  Christian  life.  Hundreds  have  gone  out  from 
these  halls  of  learning  to  honor  God  and  be  a  great  blessing  to 
humanity. 

Verily  we  feel  that  we  owe  a  lasting  debt  of  gratitude  to  God 
for  leading  us  into  such  a  field  of  usefulness,  in  which  under  his 
blessing  so  much  good  has  been  accomplished.  To  him  who 
has  been  our  wisdom  and  strength,  our  comforter  and  guide,  be 
all  the  praise! 


456  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

There  are  other  institutions  of  learning  in  suc- 
cessful operation  under  the  patronage  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  South,  in  Missouri — some  that  have  a 
long  and  interesting  history,  but  their  friends  have 
failed  to  furnish  historical  sketches  of  them;  yet 
we  must  not  pass  them  by  in  silence. 

HOWARD  COLLEGE 

for  young  ladies,  located  at  Fayette,  well  deserves 
a  place  in  the  history  of  "  Methodism  in  Missouri." 
It  is  not  only  the  oldest  Methodist  female  college 
in  the  State,  but  more  young  ladies  have  been  ed- 
ucated within  her  classic  halls  than  in  any  other 
institution  of  the  kind  in  this  great  and  grand  Com- 
monwealth of  ours.  Other  literary  institutions  have 
come  and  gone.  They  did  good  work,  and  flour- 
ished for  a  season ;  but  they  could  not  survive  the 
trials,  the  vicissitudes,  and  the  difficulties  incident 
to  educational  institutions,  and  per  consequence 
they  went  down  and  are  numbered  among  the 
things  that  were.  But  Howard  College,  with  a  vi- 
tality that  will  not  die,  with  a  purpose  that  knows 
no  change,  with  a  will  that  always  conquers,  has 
moved  right  forward  through  misfortunes,  disap- 
pointments, and  financial  embarrassments,  in  a 
successful  career  for  about  four  decades  of  years. 
Her  educated  daughters  are  to  be  found  in  all 
parts  of  the  State.  Nor  is  that  all:  they  are  now 
sending  their  daughters  to  be  educated  at  their 
Alma  Mater i  where  they  spent  the  happiest  years 
of  their  lives  in  the  culture  of  their  heads  and  their 


1869-70.  Educational.  457 

hearts  to  fit  them  for  the  responsible  duties  await- 
ing them  in  the  future. 

The  prospect  of  the  college  was  never  more 
promising  and  encouraging  than  at  the  present 
time.  Though  already  a  building  of  considerable 
magnitude,  yet  they  find  it  necessary  to  increase  its 
capacity  by  a  new  addition  that  is  to  cost  about 
twenty  thousand  dollars.  Should  they  succeed  in 
this  enterprise  it  will  add  very  materially  to  the 
convenience  and  accommodation  of  the  boarding 
department,  and  will  give  to  the  whole  structure 
a  more  commanding  appearance.  We  entertain  no 
doubts  respecting  its  completion,  for  it  is  in  the 
hands  of  the  indefatigable  and  indomitable  Groves, 
who  does  not  succumb  to  difficulties. 

ST.   CHARLES  COLLEGE. 

As  Howard  College  is  the  oldest  Methodist  fe- 
male college,  so  St.  Charles  College  is  the  oldest 
Methodist  male  college  in  the  State.  Its  history  is 
varied  and  checkered.  Formidable  difficulties  have 
been  in  the  way  of  its  success.  It  is  in  that  part 
of  the  State  where  foreign  population  is  largely  in 
the  ascendency,  and  continues  to  increase,  while 
American  population  is  all  the  time  diminishing. 
The  Lutherans  and  Catholics  have  their  schools 
and  colleges,  and  they  adhere  as  rigidly  to  their 
system  of  education  as  they  do  to  their  religion. 
Indeed,  it  is  a  fundamental  principle  with  them  to 
educate  their  own  children,  not  only  in  the  arts 
and  sciences,  and  literature  and  philosophy,  but 
especially  in  the  doctrines  and  usages  of  their  own 


458  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

Church.  In  this  they  act  wisely,  because  by  so 
doing  they  secure  their  children  to  their  Church, 
and  thereby  perpetuate  their  own  religious  institu- 
tions. Thus  we  can  account  for  the  perpetuity 
and  wonderful  success  of  the  Catholic  Church 
during  hundreds  and  hundreds  of  years.  This  ac- 
counts, too,  for  their  strong  opposition  to  our  pub- 
lic schools,  which  tend  to  upset  and  overthrow 
their  ecclesiastical  system  of  education,  which  con- 
stitutes the  foundation  of  their  Church.  Hence 
they  fight  the  public  school  system  with  all  their 
might  and  main,  because  it  strikes  at  the  very  basic 
principles  of  their  ecclesiastical  fabric. 

While  our  Church  acts  upon  a  much  broader 
and  more  liberal  basis,  we  might  do  well  to  imitate 
their  example  in  educating  our  own  children  in  our 
own  schools  and  colleges,  and  thereby  secure  them 
to  our  Church.  We  are  under  the  impression  that 
the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  is  more  liberal  in  the 
matter  of  education,  as  well  as  in  some  other  things, 
than  any  other  Protestant  denomination  in  the  coun- 
try. Go  to  the  schools  of  other  denominations, 
and  you  will  find  the  children  of  Methodists,  but 
how  many  children  of  other  denominations  will 
you  find  in  our  schools?  Send  your  children  to 
other  schools,  and  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  they  will 
return  home  in  the  faith  of  the  school  in  which 
they  were  educated.  Therefore,  by  sending  them 
to  other  schools,  they  become  lost  to  our  Church. 
How  many  Protestants  have  sent  their  daughters 
to  Catholic  schools,  who  became  Catholics  and 


1869-70.  Educational.  459 

perhaps  have  taken  the  veil  and  are  now  in  the 
nunnery  for  life ! 

St.  Charles  College  has  done  good  work,  and  a 
great  deal  of  it.  Before  Central  College  or  any 
other  college  west  of  the  Mississippi  River  had  an 
existence,  St.  Charles  College  was  educating  the 
young  men  of  this  State,  commencing  its  career  in 
1834  under  the  presidency  and  management  of 
such  a  man  as  Dr.  Fielding;  highly  distinguished 
for  his  talents,  his  ripe  scholarship,  his  administra- 
tive ability,  and  his  eminent  Christian  character. 
The  college  opened  under  favorable  auspices,  and 
enjoyed  great  success  and  prosperity  for  a  series 
of  years.  Many  ministers,  lawyers,  physicians, 
and  statesmen  received  their  education  in  this  old 
institution  of  learning.  She  may  well  boast  of 
such  men  as  Dr.  H.  A.  Bourland,  Dr.  J.  E.  God- 
bey,  Gen.  Dent,  Hon.  D.  P.  Dire,  J.  C.  Orick, 
Judge  A.  Krekel,  and  others.  While  this  institu- 
tion has  elevated  them  to  high  positions  of  honor 
and  trust,  they  in  turn  are  reflecting  no  little  credit 
and  honor  upon  their  Alma  Mater.  Any  literary 
institution  throughout  this  vast  republic  should  not 
hesitate  to  own  such  men  as  those  of  whom  we 
have  just  spoken. 

The  college  is  still  in  operation,  and  President 
Myers  reports  favorably  of  the  last  term  ending  in 
June,  1890.  He  says  that  they  had  about  as  many 
in  the  boarding  department  as  they  could  well  ac- 
commodate. 

There  are  other  educational  institutions  of  the 


460  Methodism  in  Missouri.  1869-70. 

Church  in  different  sections  of  the  State,  both 
male  and  female,  in  a  healthy  condition,  and  faith- 
fully performing  the  work  for  which  they  were  or- 
ganized. It  is  gratifying  to  know  that  our  Church 
is  not  behind  in  this  great  cause,  but  is  grandly 
moving  forward  in  the  establishment  of  schools, 
academies,  and  colleges  sufficient  to  meet  all  the 
demands  of  our  sons  and  daughters,  and  to  give 
them  a  complete  physical,  intellectual,  moral,  and 
religious  education  to  qualify  them  to  take  the 
places  of  their  fathers  and  mothers,  and  to  perform 
well  their  part  in  the  responsible  duties  and  battles 
of  life.  Parents  who  give  their  children  such  an 
education  may  reasonably  expect  to  see  them  in 
high  places  of  usefulness  in  society,  in  the  Church, 
and  in  the  State;  and  when  their  work  is  done,  to 
meet  them  in  the  eternal,  heavenly  home  of  the 
true  and  the  faithful. 


THE  END. 


